The scientific method meets the delirium of dreams in this oddball outing from Anthony Mann. Research chemist Nora (Brenda Marshall) is close to perfecting her new anesthetic, but it has numbed her to the needs of beau Steve (William Gargan). Jealous of her enticing chemistry, Nora's assistant Arline (Hillary Brooke) rigs a mishap that leaves Nora disfigured and in need of plastic surgery. From here, this dizzy story stirs insurance scams, accidental death, identity theft, and mawkish melodrama into a caustic concoction that keeps you wondering what pharmaceutical could have inspired such a strange, but never formulaic, dose of noir.