This movie is a wonderful thriller about an abused wife and a mistreated mistress who team up to kill the brutal husband. Their plot at first seems like a perfect crime, but then complications start appearing. From the start, the wife's remorse risks revealing the crime, particularly after an inspector shows up. Then the husband's corpse disappears. The mystery and tension build up through the entire film, all the way to the conclusion.
The flaws are quite minor, because they don't detract from the suspense at all. One problem is that the ending was a bit too abrupt. An extra minute or two of denouement would have helped.
Another problem is that a few early clues in the movie were presented in a way that went a bit too far in misdirecting viewers away from the correct conclusion. A good mystery needs some red herrings, but one should have a bit more chance of recognizing them as misdirection. It would be an inexcusable spoiler to reveal the false clues, avoiding spoilers makes it difficult to explain which clue I mean to those who have seen the movie.
A nice touch at the end of the movie is that it has a request on screen asking viewers not to reveal the movie's secrets to people who haven't seen it. It is said to be the first movie to have included such a request.
I saw the Criterion DVD version. I'm pleased they selected it, because that's one thing that led me to watch the movie. In spite of the minor flaws I noted, the movie is a suspense classic.
The flaws are quite minor, because they don't detract from the suspense at all. One problem is that the ending was a bit too abrupt. An extra minute or two of denouement would have helped.
Another problem is that a few early clues in the movie were presented in a way that went a bit too far in misdirecting viewers away from the correct conclusion. A good mystery needs some red herrings, but one should have a bit more chance of recognizing them as misdirection. It would be an inexcusable spoiler to reveal the false clues, avoiding spoilers makes it difficult to explain which clue I mean to those who have seen the movie.
A nice touch at the end of the movie is that it has a request on screen asking viewers not to reveal the movie's secrets to people who haven't seen it. It is said to be the first movie to have included such a request.
I saw the Criterion DVD version. I'm pleased they selected it, because that's one thing that led me to watch the movie. In spite of the minor flaws I noted, the movie is a suspense classic.