Character Relationship Map: Dark Places

Characters

• Prescot (played by Herbert Lom) — supporting

  Solicitor attempting to claim two suitcases of rumored hidden money on the estate. Edward Foster attempts to kill him before being arrested by the police.

• Alta (played by Jane Birkin) — supporting

  Younger and more attractive governess whom Andrew Marr planned to leave his wife for. Murdered by Victoria's psychotic children while attempting to seduce Andrew.

• Edward Foster / Andrew Marr (played by Robert Hardy) — supporting

  Recently released asylum patient who inherits the mansion. Suffers from intense flashbacks of Marr's past, loses his grip on reality, commits several murders, and is ultimately arrested with the money...

• Victoria (played by Jean Marsh) — supporting

  Andrew Marr's mentally unstable wife. Her marriage collapses when Andrew plans to leave her for Alta. She encourages her children to murder Alta but is subsequently strangled by Andrew.

Canonical Relationships

Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.

• Edward Foster / Andrew Marr → Alta (Romantic Intended Lover) — Their intended relationship destabilizes Andrew's marriage and triggers Victoria's retaliation.

  Andrew had planned to leave Victoria for Alta, whom the plot describes as younger and more attractive.

• Edward Foster / Andrew Marr → Alta (Temporal Remembered Romantic Rivalry) — Alta becomes central to the past romantic conflict that Edward relives.

  Edward's flashbacks reveal that Andrew planned to leave Victoria for the younger and more attractive governess Alta.

• Edward Foster / Andrew Marr → Victoria (Temporal Remembered Spousal Bond) — Edward's unstable identification with Andrew connects him to Victoria's past marriage.

  Edward experiences flashbacks of Andrew Marr's marriage to Victoria and witnesses the collapse of their relationship.

Story Dynamics

Alliances, conflicts, and narrative interactions that evolve throughout the story.

• Edward Foster / Andrew Marr → Victoria (Marital Conflict) — The collapse of their marriage drives the central historical tragedy.

  Andrew plans to leave Victoria for Alta, and Victoria's desperation leads to the attempted seduction and the murder plot.

• Victoria → Alta (Conflict Murder Instigator) — Victoria treats Alta as a threat to her marriage and initiates the lethal attack against her.

  Victoria encourages her psychotic children to murder Alta after Andrew plans to leave her for Alta.

• Edward Foster / Andrew Marr → Prescot (Conflict Attempted Murder) — Their conflict emerges when Edward attacks Prescot over the estate and the hidden money.

  After losing control of reality, Edward attempts to kill Prescot before the police arrest him.

Story Analysis

A mansion inheritance draws a psychologically unstable man into buried violence, collapsing the boundary between his identity and a dead owner's past.

Plot Progression

1. Inheritance Under Threat — Edward inherits the mansion after Andrew Marr's death and refuses to leave despite haunting rumors and intimidation. The estate's hidden-money rumor introduces competing interests.
2. Voices Behind the Walls — Edward's asylum history is revealed as he begins hearing voices and experiencing disturbing flashbacks. The mansion gradually becomes a gateway to Andrew's buried past.
3. A Marriage Unravels — The flashbacks expose Andrew's collapsing marriage to Victoria and his intention to leave her for Alta. Victoria responds with desperation and a murder plot.
4. The Buried Massacre — Alta is murdered, Andrew kills Victoria and the children, and the bodies are hidden behind a wall with the money. Edward's connection to these events becomes increasingly unstable.
5. Madness Takes Control — Edward can no longer separate himself from Andrew and commits further violence during the flashbacks. He attacks Prescot, is arrested, and loses the hidden money to the police.