Powerful suspense is the keynote of Edward Dymtryk’s first British directional effort and a strong dramatic situation has been developed from Alec Coppel’s ill-fated stage play A Man about a Dog, which ran for only a few nights.
A straightforward situation is presented in which a doctor plans the ‘perfect’ murder of his wife’s American lover. Firstly the victim is confined in chains and the intention is to keep him alive while the hue and cry is on. If suspicion should fall on the doctor he could always produce the missing person.
In the early stages the pace could be quickened but the whole atmosphere becomes tense when the official Scotland Yard inquiries begin. Naunton Wayne as the Yard superintendent is an example of perfect casting and his nonchalant manner deserves particular praise.
