Unlike many of the writer's plots,it is not a whodunit but pure thriller ;"Philomel cottage" was a short story which was often transferred to the screen (there's another version featuring Sylvia Sidney);It's possible by the author was inspired by Charles Perrault 's fairy tale "Bluebeard" ,the darkroom replacing the bedroom the heroine must not enter.
The problem is that a short story is inevitably too short,and the first part drags on a little;but by the second part,in "Philomel Cottage ",the movie hits his stride and both actors deliver the goods ;one can regret the phone call to the butcher , one of Dame Christie's best tricks ,but the writer's job in a dispensary shows.Otherwise, the film is faithfull to the story with minor differences: the heroine,for instance,does not win on the lottery but comes into a "distant cousin"'s inheritance.And ,yes,in the short story ,the real name of the hero was Charles (like writer Perrault) Lemaître ,a French.
Sit back,turn out the lights, and get some scares!
The problem is that a short story is inevitably too short,and the first part drags on a little;but by the second part,in "Philomel Cottage ",the movie hits his stride and both actors deliver the goods ;one can regret the phone call to the butcher , one of Dame Christie's best tricks ,but the writer's job in a dispensary shows.Otherwise, the film is faithfull to the story with minor differences: the heroine,for instance,does not win on the lottery but comes into a "distant cousin"'s inheritance.And ,yes,in the short story ,the real name of the hero was Charles (like writer Perrault) Lemaître ,a French.
Sit back,turn out the lights, and get some scares!