16-year-old Laurel is a compulsive liar who enjoys driving away applicants by making up a sordid story of a previous governess being eaten by a shark.

Miss Madrigal, an attractive thirtyish woman, applies for the position of governess to the granddaughter of Mrs. St. Maugham.

As Miss Madrigal and another applicant await interviews, Laurel relates that a previous governess was eaten by sharks and expresses her compulsion to burn down the house.

A search of Miss Madrigal’s bedroom reveals all her clothes are new, many bearing price tags, the initials “CDW” on her painting kit, and a lack of family pictures.

When Miss Madrigal joins them, Laurel and Maitland discuss their interest in true crime stories.

A skeptical Miss Madrigal comments, “The truth doesn’t always ring true in a court of law…what the prisoner listens to is not his life.

Maitland goes to Miss Madrigal, who is preparing to leave her post, and convinces her to stay, expressing admiration for her.

Miss Madrigal tells Maitland that she fears that Laurel is following the same path that led to her being accused of murder with no one believing the truth.

Miss Madrigal speaks to Judge McWhirrey, who had not recognized her, but he suggests she appeal directly to Mrs. St. Maugham.

Hunter wanted Ingrid Bergman for the film and had originally sought Gladys Cooper for the role of Mrs. St. Maugham in place of Edith Evans.

Neame says "Except for my disappointment with the clean, white, sterile decor, the shooting period itself was most enjoyable."

"[6] In a contemporary review for The New York Times, critic Bosley Crowther wrote: "A great deal of scrupulous cultivation and orderly shaping of the plot have been done ... Ronald Neame, who has directed the picture, and John Michael Hayes, who has written the script, present us with a cozy, compact drama that follows a comfortable, sentimental line.

There are moments, however, when the sharpness of Miss Bagnold's oblique slant on life cuts through, usually in glints of hidden mischief or in lines of slashing paradox and wit.