Whirlpool (1949)

A woman secretly suffering from kleptomania is hypnotized in an effort to cure her condition. Soon afterwards, she is found at the scene of a murder with no memory of how she got there and seemingly no way to prove her innocence.

Director:

Otto Preminger

Writers:

Ben Hecht (screenplay), Andrew Solt (screenplay)

Stars:

Gene Tierney, Richard Conte, José Ferrer

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Gene Tierney	...	Ann Sutton
Richard Conte	...	Dr. William 'Bill' Sutton
José Ferrer	...	David Korvo (as Jose Ferrer)
Charles Bickford	...	Lt. James Colton
Barbara O'Neil	...	Theresa Randolph
Eduard Franz	...	Martin Avery
Constance Collier	...	Tina Cosgrove
Fortunio Bonanova	...	Feruccio di Ravallo

Storyline

The wife of a psycho-analyst falls prey to a devious quack hypnotist when he discovers she is an habitual shoplifter. Then one of his previous patients, now being treated by the real psycho-analyst, is found murdered. With her still at the scene suspicion points only one way.

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Plot Keywords:

hypnotist | deception | memory | false accusation | psychiatrist | 

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Taglines:

There are two sides to every woman when she gives her heart to one man...and she loses her soul to another.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Film-Noir | Mystery | Romance | Thriller

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Italian

Release Date:

28 November 1949 (USA)

Also Known As:

Dilemma

Filming Locations:

20th Century Fox Studios - 10201 Pico Blvd., Century City, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The interrogation room is decorated with calendars from Pierce Brothers Mortuary and Inglewood Park Cemetery. These seem rather inappropriate for a police station, and may have been someone's idea of a dark joke.

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Goofs

At the beginning of the film, it is obvious that the store's "glass" doors have no glass in them whatsoever.

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Quotes

David Korvo: You were wise not to tell your husband, Mrs. Sutton. A successful marriage is usually based on what a husband and wife don't know about each other.

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Connections

Referenced in Choose Me (1984)

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Soundtracks

Again
(uncredited)
Music by Lionel Newman
Played at the hotel lounge

User Reviews

Psychology/Astrology . . . predators of human weakness?

Part psychological drama, part film-noir. The beautiful wife of the famous psychoanalyst Dr. William Sutton, gets caught stealing an expensive pin from a department store. The infamous astrologer David Korvo comes to her aide but for a price. Through hypnosis, Mrs. Ann Sutton will unconsciously become a party to an elaborate scheme involving murder. What's most interesting about this film is the relationship between psychology and astrology. Are they both pseudo-sciences? Psychological tricksters preying on the weaknesses inherent in the human psyche? Mrs. Sutton suffers from the condition Kleptomania, but is caught between the patriarchal righteousness of her husband, "Stay as you are, as you've always been - healthy and adorable" and the cold cynicism of Mr. Korvo, "A successful marriage is usually based on what a husband and wife don't know about each other." Both Dr. Sutton and Mr. Korvo are bright guys adept at exploiting human weakness in others (especially Ann's), but both fall prey to a shared weakness: wounded vanity. An interesting film that is well worth watching. Jose Ferrer as Korvo is a standout but Gene Tierney seems to have lost her fire and ends up sleepwalking through the film, even when she is not hypnotized.