Under Suspicion story
Madam Freya, a famous pianist who long ago left her country and is thus legally not a citizen of any country, is currently on tour in a South American country troubled by a rebellion, living in a hotel and often visited by friend and lover Jorge Vega. On the day of her last concert before her departure, a member of the country's secret police visits her, and recruits her against her will to spy on the hotel room next door, which serves as a drop-off point for rebel messages. Freya does not want to help, but is forced to do so when her passport is confiscated. She is instructed to signal the secret servicemen by playing a different type of music on her piano in case the courier is innocent, or guilty. To her shock, she sees Jorge Vega arriving that day, who says goodbye and instructs her to deliver a manuscript to a friend in another country. As he leaves, Freya plays the music for guilty, and Vega is arrested and shot when he tries to escape. The agent scolds Freya, as they found nothing on Vega, meaning he was innocent. However, Freya reveals she gave him up not because he was a traitor - but because he saw her coming out the room of Senora Zerlina, a young lady of ill repute, and realized he has been cheating on her all this time. The agent, angry at the failure, finds the manuscript and opens it, revealing that Jorge was not just a cheating lover, but also the rebel contact, and was about to have Freya smuggle the message out of the country for him. Directed by: Peter Sasdy. Story by: Anthony Fowles, based on a story by Norman Edwards.
9 total · 2 choice · 6 major · 1 minor
| Theme | Level | Motivation |
|---|---|---|
| hell hath no fury like a woman scorned | choice | The story leads up to the following plot twist: Madam Freya risked her own life and liberty in the end by falsely betraying her lover, Jorge Vega, to the secret police that were waiting to catch him. He had not proved himself a conspirator but instead she had caught him entering the apartment of a rivaling young lady. |
| personal life and death dilemma | choice | The political refugee and concert pianist Madam Freya was faced with the following tough decision: Either go against every moral fiber of her being by collaborating with the secret police and sacrificing her lover, or refuse and risk them following through on their threat to inflict career ending injuries to her hands. |
| authoritarianism | major | The story is set in an unnamed, authoritarian South American country. Orson Welles characterized the country as a "police state" in his closing monologue. |
| music | major | Madame Freya was a famous concert pianist. She was touring an authoritarian South American country beset by rebellion. A key plot element involves an attempt by the secret police at coercing her into using her piano playing as a means of identifying an alleged traitor. |
| revolution in society | major | The story is set in an unnamed, authoritarian South American country that was in the midst of rebellion. |
| romantic infidelity | major | In a surprise twist, Madam Freya discover that shocking truth that her lover, Simon Vega, had been cheating on her with Señora Zerlina. |
| romantic relationship | major | Madam Freya and Jorge Vega were lovers. |
| what it is like to be a refugee | major | Madam Freya was a stateless political refugee of an unnamed authoritarian country. |
| prostitution | minor | Simon insinuated that Señora Zerlina was a prostitute. |