A sadistic husband mentally tortures his wife, while eventually planning to murder her. Although no one believes her, she gets help from an unexpected source.

"Stark Fear" is the story of Ellen Winslow, who hungers for affection but finds herself chained to a hate-warped husband Gerald. Ellen gets a job, which is more than George seems to be able to do, but he disappears in a jealous rage, but Ellen's sense of loyalty and duty won't let her abandon him, so she goes looking for him in his home town. Gerald attacks her anew, and she is subjected to painful humiliation and abuse by Gerald's best friend, lecherous old Harvey Suggett, at a Comanche tribal dance. The hidden Gerald watches with sadistic delight. Ellen buries herself in her work, to forget her anguish, and falls in love with her employer, Cliff Kane, and they both take a business weekend at the "Little Switzerland" resort in Arkansas. Ellen tells Gerald that he is too emotionally warped for marriage and divorces him, and to prove she is wrong he tries to kill her.—Les Adams <[email protected]>

A noir psychodrama set amongst the oil fields of Oklahoma with obvious nods to a particular Hitchcock classic, Stark Fear is the sole film directed by WWII cameraman Ned Hockman, with B-pic favorites Beverly Garland and Skip Homeier (in a particularly oily performance).—yusufpiskin