
The wife of a psychiatrist falls prey to a devious hypnotist when he discovers she's an habitual shoplifter. Then one of his former patients - now being treated by a real psychoanalyst's, found murdered, with her at the scene, suspicion points only one way.... (Full plot summary below)
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The wife of a psychiatrist falls prey to a devious hypnotist when he discovers she's an habitual shoplifter. Then one of his former patients - now being treated by a real psychoanalyst's, found murdered, with her at the scene, suspicion points only one way.
Leave your thoughts about Whirlpool.
| CineVueChristopher MachellWhirlpool's stand-out scene, in which a somnambulant Gene Tierney incriminates herself ... uses the conventions of horror cinema as much as that of noir. |
| Eye for FilmJennie KermodeFerrer is wonderfully sleazy as Korvo and makes the perfect foil for Tierney. |
| CinePassionFernando F. CroceVery wry, very Viennese satire of psychoanalysis as bourgeois fad |
| Reel Film ReviewsDavid Nusair...a sporadically trashy, thoroughly absurd murder mystery. |
| Time OutGeoff AndrewIt's a fine example of the way Preminger, on occasion, managed to deflect routine melodrama into something more personal and profound. |
| User ReviewDarlyne LThe classics are always so great. I loved the themes and how they play out to the resolution. |
| User Reviewgary twow umn just seen this movie 4 the 1st time n think that this is a good movie 2 watch.....its got a good cast of actors/actressess thorughout this movie....i think that richard conte, jose ferrer, eduard franz, fortunio bonanova, gene tierney, barbara o neil, charles bickford, constance collier play good roles/parts thorughout this movie,.....i think that gene tierney/jose ferrer were great throughout this movie.....i think that the director of this classics/drama/thriller movie had done a good job of directing this movie because you never know what 2 expect thorughout this movie.....i think that this is a good classics drama movie 2 watch its got a great cast thorughout this movie n its enjoyable movie 2 watch |
| User ReviewAshley HWhirlpool is an intriguing film. It is about a woman secretly suffering from kleptomania is hypnotized in an effort to cure her condition. Gene Tierney and Jose Ferrer give excellent performances. The screenplay is well written. Otto Preminger did a great job directing this movie. I enjoyed watching this motion picture because of the drama and mystery. |
| User ReviewDebi WThis movie was very entertaining and a great 1950s mystery movie. |
| User ReviewRyan MI think the reviewers so far have largely sold this film short. Yes the idea of hypnotic inducement to crime is pretty dubious, but in 'Whirlpool' it's really just a plot point embedded in a broader study of trust, pathology, and love. Conte's characterization is maybe clouded or undermined by his history as an actor cast primarily in proletarian-type roughneck roles, but the complicated chemistry of Bickford, Ferrer, and Tierney is compelling enough to imbue the movie with its necessary suspense -- its dread even (there's a moment maybe 4/5 of the way through where the case on Tierney seems closed and one really gets to thinking that the whole affair is going to collapse into devastation unthinkable for a typical Hollywood film). Preminger maybe fails in scripting Bickford's character as alternatively resigned and resourceful, creating an aftereffect not of psychological complexity but of semi-routine B-picture mental machinations -- more narratively functional than inherently interesting. Still, 'Whirlpool' has an appealing darkness and pays at least small dividends of thematic satisfaction. |