Fun murder mystery helped greatly by delightful cast. Ricardo Cortez is the male lead but he's not the real star. That would be masculine Constance Collier, here wearing a bad white wig and looking positively like a drag queen. She sets out to solve the murder so that her nephew Cortez can marry Virginia Bruce (beautiful, as always). Bruce's character is a bit insufferable though. As is usually the case in these types of movies, the supporting cast makes the picture. Great character actors like Edward Brophy, Arthur Byron, Ivan Simpson, and Samuel Hinds. Then there's Regis Toomey. Toomey was a rather static actor I've never been terribly impressed with in other films of his I've seen. Imagine Dick Powell without the personality. However, here Toomey shines and delivers some of the movie's best lines.
It was interesting to see how differently this movie handled some of the procedural aspects of the law. Lots of talk about rights and not having enough evidence to hold someone without arresting them. Often in murder mysteries of the 30s and 40s, the police seem to act largely with impunity, arresting people with little or no evidence and holding them like a conviction was a foregone conclusion.
This is not a classic or anything but if you enjoy murder mysteries from the 30s, I'm sure you'll have a good time with this one. Give it a shot.
It was interesting to see how differently this movie handled some of the procedural aspects of the law. Lots of talk about rights and not having enough evidence to hold someone without arresting them. Often in murder mysteries of the 30s and 40s, the police seem to act largely with impunity, arresting people with little or no evidence and holding them like a conviction was a foregone conclusion.
This is not a classic or anything but if you enjoy murder mysteries from the 30s, I'm sure you'll have a good time with this one. Give it a shot.