Stolen Face

Lady Harringay arrives at Dr. Ritter's central London clinic seeking help. He bluntly explains that he can do no more after a lifetime of facelifts. The exchange establishes the bleak limit of cosmetic possibilities and sets up Ritter's worldview.

Ritter drives with a friend to Holloway Prison and interviews Lily Conover. He is struck by the scar on her face and begins to suspect that her disfigurement is linked to her criminality. This encounter sparks his controversial belief that surgery could reshape her fate.

On the return journey, the pair nearly crash, jolting Ritter into considering a holiday in the countryside. He decides to take some time away from his practice to reassess his life and work.

At a country inn, Ritter meets Alice Brent, a gifted concert pianist, and quickly falls in love. Alice is already engaged to her manager David, and she runs away rather than tell Ritter the truth. This encounter ignites a powerful, forbidden attraction.

Back at his surgery, Alice finally tells Ritter of her engagement to David. The revelation devastates him and complicates his feelings of love and duty.

Lily, newly released from prison, becomes Ritter's patient. He resolves to reconstruct her face, hoping to imitate Alice to win her affection and perhaps redeem her.

Ritter completes Lily's facial reconstruction and, despite doubts, the two marry. The transformation cements their bond, even as questions about Lily's past loom.

Lily grows bored with Ritter's sedate lifestyle and returns to a life of crime and wild partying. She becomes flirtatious with other men, and Ritter increasingly despises the volatility that defines her.

Lily declares she will never grant Ritter a divorce, deepening the trap of their marriage. The uneasy situation hints at an impending rupture.

As Alice completes her concert tour, David senses she loves someone else and calls off the engagement. The strain heightens the emotional stakes for Ritter and Alice.

Alice visits Ritter and says she is free to marry him now. Ritter is stunned as he confesses what he has done, revealing his role in Lily's makeover and their tangled history.

Ritter leaves London for Plymouth, hoping to escape the consequences of his actions. Lily follows on the same train, becoming drunk and aggressive toward him.

Alice boards the carriage as Ritter and Lily's confrontation escalates. Lily accidentally falls from the carriage door to her death, her face horribly mutilated. Ritter and Alice are finally reunited.