Spousal Abuse

Wow...odd reactions some people are having to this post.

Among other things, we see Lina being called an old maid by her parents in the beginning of the film. Just minute before she's literally fighting Johnny off when they're standing silouetted on the hill. But when Lina hears the hurtful (and true) words spoken by her parents, saying they'll probably have to take care of her for the rest of her life, she grabs Johnny and kisses him.

The prospect of being an old maid would have been completely horrifying and unacceptable, as would the possibility later be for her to crawl back to her parents if she left Johhny (especially when her father already intuited and heard gossip about what kind of man Johnny was). Lina would have ended up the sad single daughter with her aging parents, having fallen in love only once and that one time to a total creep whose charm she couldn't see beyond.

"monkeyface" could be a number of things -- it's a term of endearment, but when he coined it originally it did have an edge, as you say. It's almost like an early test of how much she would take from him, vs stand up for herself. It's teasing, but the degree to which its endearing vs sort of keeping her in her place is equivocal, ambivalent, like most of Cary Grant's words and actions.

She doesn't have other options with other men. She doesn't want to be alone, either as a spinster or divorcee, and she's willing to **hope** that Johnny is rules by his better nature.

The prospect of severe social shame of a woman perceived to be undesirable, abandoned, or hoodwinked, compromised, and used in that culture would have been enormous. Even the lowest of the low (i.e., the "Bottoms" who she accompanies to church) would be able to scorn her.

And as others have mentioned divorce *was* still a scandal in 1941, in that society. Lina would have been looked down on as a failure as a woman who could not handle her husband, or as a woman so utterly foolish as to marry clearly an inappropriate person and would be blamed for that.

So...in light of all those realities, what choices does Lina have? she can leave him and not only have lost at the one love she dared go for, but also experience social ostracism and shame (for her and her family) OR try to deny to herself what was happening, the way he was treating her, what he was clearly like, the level of deep disrespect he had for her, and to choose instead to make the best of it, hope she was wrong, hope she was imagining it.

People say the original ending is made too much of. I had no idea about the original ending when I watched Suspicion for the first time, last night. But when that ending came around it was obvious it had been grafted on---and that something had gone very wrong with this film. In fact said to my friend: "What was THAT? that's BS!!" Because that is not where the plot was going.

Where the plot was headed was this---and which refers to the OP's observations about Lina and Johnny---the last person to speak to Lina, other than Johnny, was Isobel the author. Isobel says to Lina: "Have you *ever* been able to deny Johnny anything he's wanted?" to which Lina wistfully replies "No...no, I haven't," and in that moment we are to know that she will let Johnny go ahead with his plan to poison her, because she would rather die believing his love for her was real and she would rather NOT be around to live if in fact he's as awful as she suspects he might be. She would rather do his bidding and preserve the illusion of reciprocal love and respect, than see in the light of day that she has always been the target of a grotesque cold-blooded plot to marry wealthy, get rid of everyone between him and her money, and live the life of a perpetual playboy.

Not sure if I'd label Johnnie as an abuser. But since you did, let's just go along with that for argument's sake. You actually answered your own question in the subject of your comment. I'm surprised no one else has made this point. The victim of abuse very often has a strong emotional attachment to the abuser. Lina even delivers a classic victim line at the end of the film when she declares that everything that happened was all her fault.

Why does she stay with him?

I found him annoying rather than charming.

When they first meet Lina says that she believes she would be able to control Johnny if she had 'the bit between his teeth'; a riding analogy. Then when she uncovers his first lie, about owing money and wanting to live beyond his means, she describes him as a baby because she believes his psychology is to live without thinking of consequences and refusing to delay gratification. On this point I believe she's right.

The point of these two instances, and there are others, is that Lina believed she could control and change Johnny. This is part of the cement of their relationship and this is why she endures his moods and lies. She is as much a contributor to their dysfunctional relationship as is he.

As their relationship progresses, she keeps secrets and lies just as he does. It's quite fascinating.

Away with the manners of withered virgins