description Tension Overview
Tension is a 1949 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film noir directed by John Berry, starring Richard Basehart as Warren Quimby, a pharmacist who creates a false identity as part of a plan to confront his wife's lover. Audrey Totter co-stars as his wife, with Cyd Charisse and Barry Sullivan in supporting roles. The plot turns on a reversal in which the intended target is killed by someone else, and the police investigation gradually closes in on Quimby. The film is a lesser-known entry in MGM's late-1940s noir output, notable for Basehart's performance as a man stretched between passivity and desperation.
help Tension FAQ
Who plays the detective in the 1949 film noir Tension?
Barry Sullivan plays Lt. Bonnabel, the gum-chewing police detective whose methodical investigation anchors the film. He squares off against Richard Basehart's pharmacist, who has constructed a false identity to target his wife's lover.
Does Cyd Charisse dance in Tension?
No, she plays a straight dramatic role as Ruth, the sympathetic colleague at the drugstore where Basehart's character works. Her famous MGM dancing roles, like Singin' in the Rain and The Band Wagon, came a few years later.
Was Tension director John Berry blacklisted?
Yes. John Berry was targeted during the McCarthy era and eventually left the United States, continuing his career in France. Tension, made for MGM in 1949, stands as one of his notable Hollywood films before the blacklist derailed his American run.
What is the plot of Tension (1949) about?
Richard Basehart plays Warren Quimby, a mild-mannered pharmacist who builds up an alter ego to confront the smooth-talking man, played by the film's lothario, who is having an affair with his wife (Audrey Totter). When the lover turns up dead anyway, the police investigation pulls Quimby into an increasingly tight corner.
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