450 Obsession (1949)

[MichaelB]

OBSESSION
(Edward Dmytryk, 1949)
Release date: 17 June 2024
Limited Edition Blu-ray (World premiere)

Pre-order here (UK) or here (US)

Starring Robert Newton (Kiss the Blood Off My Hands), Phil Brown (The Camp on Blood Island), Sally Gray (They Made Me a Fugitive), and Naunton Wayne (The Lady Vanishes), Obsession takes a dark and unsettling journey into the mind of a murderer.

When psychiatrist Clive (Newton) learns that his wife, Storm (Gray), is having an affair, he resolves to take revenge by kidnapping and murdering her lover, Bill (Brown), and dissolving his corpse in acid. As Bill languishes in Clive’s cellar, Detective Finsbury (Naunton) doggedly pursues the case...

Written by Alec Coppel (Vertigo), scored by Nino Rota (8½, The Godfather), and directed by Edward Dmytryk (The Sniper) during his blacklist-induced exile in Britain, Obsession’s original release was delayed due to the ongoing court case of real-life ‘Acid Bath Murderer’ John Haigh.

INDICATOR LIMITED EDITION BLU-RAY SPECIAL FEATURES
• New 4K restoration by Powerhouse Films;
• Original mono audio;
• Audio commentary with film historians Thirza Wakefield and Melanie Williams (2024);
• The John Player Lecture with Edward Dmytryk (1972): archival audio recording of the prolific director in conversation with author and critic John Baxter, recorded at London’s National Film Theatre;
• Richard Dyer on ‘Obsession’ (2024): the academic and author explores the themes and the making of the film;
• The BEHP Interview with Gordon McCallum (1988): archival audio recording, made as part of the British Entertainment History Project, featuring sound recordist McCallum in conversation with Alan Lawson;
• Image gallery: promotional and publicity materials;
• New and improved English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing;
• Limited edition exclusive booklet with a new essay by Fintan McDonagh, archival articles on Edward Dmytryk’s period in Britain and the making of Obsession, an archival interview with actor Naunton Wayne, an overview of contemporary critical responses, and full film credits;
• World premiere on Blu-ray;
• Limited edition of 4,000 copies for the UK and the US;
• All extras subject to change.

#PHILE450B
BBFC cert: PG
REGION FREE
EAN: 5060697923964

[domino harvey]

When psychiatrist Clive (Newton) learns that his wife, Storm (Gray), is having an affair, he resolves to take revenge by kidnapping and murdering her lover, Bill (Brown), and dissolving his corpse in acid.

As you do

[knives]

I really like this one. It’s easily Dmytryk‘s best with tons of style and just a stretch of cruelty that gets pushed further and further.

[What A Disgrace]

I've been curious to see this film for some time, but never even considered that Indicator would release it, so this is a nice surprise and the sole item of the June slate I'll be getting.

[Finch]

Newton is excellent and for me, the best part of the film, along with Brown

SpoilerShow

I enjoyed the little twist of how his character ends up using Monty the dog to buy himself some more time)

. Sally Gray has a thankless role as the one-note unlikable wife and my attention wandered a little when Naunton's detective enters the film: I've never cared for Naunton, even in Lady Vanishes, and found his character a bit too Columbo-ish. I also found the deafness of the Riordans' butler a tad too convenient as an explanation for why there was no reaction to the noise in the study. Fun film but not one I think I'll be buying.