A reunion of Dirk Bogarde and Basil Dearden, the team that gave us Victim, results in something that isn't as good, but tries to be, and is at least at bit different. The hot social issue Dearden takes on here is brain washing - which has driven an old colleague of Bogarde's to kill himself. So Bogarde immerses himself in a sensory deprivation tank (years before Altered States)... under the supervision of a military man (John Clements, looking really old) who decides to test it's effectiveness by brainwashing Bogarde into thinking that he doesn't love his wife (Mary Ure). It's a really effective, creepy, horrid scene and even though it doesn't take place until 40 or so minutes in you think this is going to kick off into something really special.
Only it never does, not really. Part of the problem is Bogarde was never that convincing as a man devoted to a woman, and his great love for Ure before his brainwashing isn't as believable as his contempt for her afterwards - so his reformation doesn't strike true. Also the film goes really easy on Clements - instead of having this prick locked up at the end, Bogarde thanks him! The spy plot feels underused and there's all this Bogarde-Ure complex stuff which never feels quite right.
Still, it keeps you watching: Ure is very good as the woman who is emotionally pummelled, there's this random climax which involves her giving birth (we go through most of the process, even though it's not too graphic it's certainly more detailed than we normally get in movies), there's a great brainwashing sequence, and it's definitely different.
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