Obsession (1949) character relationship network mapped with AI analysis. Explore the connections, alliances, and conflicts between characters.
Characters
Dr. Clive Riordan
(played by Robert Newton) — protagonist
A wealthy London psychiatrist whose wife’s affair with an American drives him to revenge. He kidnaps the American, imprisons him in a hidden room, and plans to dissolve his body in acid. His scheme un...
Bill Kronin
(played by Phil Brown) — protagonist
An American romantically involved with Storm Riordan and the target of Dr. Clive Riordan’s revenge. He is held chained in a hidden room for months and is later poisoned, but survives and recovers in h...
Storm Riordan
(played by Sally Gray) — supporting
Dr. Clive Riordan’s wife, whose romantic involvement with Bill Kronin provokes the revenge plot. She later overhears a conversation with Superintendent Finsbury, prompting Clive to act. After Bill sur...
Supt. Finsbury
(played by Naunton Wayne) — supporting
A Scotland Yard superintendent investigating the disappearance connected to Dr. Clive Riordan. He initially questions Clive about the missing dog, then recognizes clues suggesting that Clive has been...
Canonical Relationships
Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.
Supt. Finsbury → Bill Kronin
(Professional Investigator) — Finsbury leads the official search for the abducted American.
Storm Riordan → Bill Kronin
(Romantic Lover) — An illicit romantic affair that triggers the central conflict.
Dr. Clive Riordan → Storm Riordan
(Family Husband) — Married couple whose relationship fractures due to Storm's infidelity.
Story Dynamics
Alliances, conflicts, and narrative interactions that evolve throughout the story.
Storm Riordan → Supt. Finsbury
(Social Informant) — Storm interacts with the superintendent, inadvertently accelerating Riordan's plan.
Dr. Clive Riordan → Supt. Finsbury
(Conflict Suspect & Investigator) — Police superintendent actively investigates the missing American and suspects the psychiatrist.
Dr. Clive Riordan → Bill Kronin
(Conflict Arch Enemy) — Riordan orchestrates a kidnapping and murder plot against Kronin out of jealous revenge.
Story Analysis
A revenge-driven murder plan collapses when an imprisoned American survives, a dog exposes the method, and police uncover the hiding place.
Plot Progression
A Grievance Takes Shape
— The psychiatrist learns of the affair and chooses revenge. Bill Kronin is kidnapped and hidden in a bomb-damaged part of London.
The Prisoner and the Plan
— The missing-person search fades while Bill Kronin remains imprisoned. The psychiatrist develops a delayed murder plan intended to conceal motive and opportunity.
The Dog Complicates Everything
— The psychiatrist prepares an acid bath and threatens Bill Kronin. The dog follows him, but Bill Kronin saves the animal from becoming another victim.
Suspicion Closes In
— A Scotland Yard superintendent investigates the missing dog and begins connecting the psychiatrist to an American companion. A small verbal clue deepens the suspicion.
The Failed Perfect Murder
— The psychiatrist poisons Bill Kronin, but the dog empties the acid bath. Police find the hidden room, while Bill Kronin's survival prevents a murder charge.
