Behind the line
What it means
Our interpretation.
The horror is the vagueness: Szell never says what 'it' is, so no honest answer exists, and a man who knows nothing is tortured for refusing to give the right one. Olivier delivers it in a calm, courteous voice, which made the scene a byword for the thriller villain who is politest when he is most dangerous. The question has since escaped the film, a shorthand for any interrogation with no way out, and the dentist's chair stays a horror-movie staple.
Context reviewed
In context
Spoilers for Marathon ManShow the scene
Marathon Man (1976, directed by John Schlesinger from William Goldman's novel and script): Nazi war criminal Christian Szell, a former camp dentist who has returned to New York to cash in a hoard of diamonds, has Columbia graduate student Babe Levy kidnapped. Strapping Babe into a dentist's chair, Szell asks the question over and over, and Babe, who knows nothing about the diamonds or his dead brother's business, can only say it is safe or not safe, and asks what the "it" is. Szell answers by taking up his dental tools. Laurence Olivier, as Szell, won a Golden Globe for the part and was Oscar-nominated.
Sources (2)
- Wikipedia: Marathon Man (film)lead and Plot sectionsReference checked
- Wikiquote: Marathon Manthe dentist-chair exchangeReference checked
Context reviewed