Mysteries are meant to keep you guessing, and perhaps the one fault of this final episode of Universal's "Crime Club" series as that it keeps you guessing way too much and has a conclusion that seems to just come out of nowhere even though it's clever in its own way. It is obvious that journalism is a cutthroat business, and for a journalist to escape from a mental institution and seek revenge on the four men who had him sent there, only to be aided by his long unseen daughter, the setup is pretty good. With a former Philo Vance (Edmund Lowe) top billed in the lead as the youngest of the four men, along with Wendy Barrie as a mysterious young lady whose identity is fairly obvious, this has the potential to be a bright combination of newspaper Intrigue and murder mystery. Walter Kingsford is memorable as a rather lecherous one of the four who makes shameless plays for the much younger Barrie with absolutely no qualms. The murders themselves are pretty gruesome and well staged, but the conclusion is quite disappointing simply because I couldn't believe it..
What is good about this film is the way it is set up, with character actors seemingly out of a horror film, giving creepy performances and holding your attention every time they are on screen. Particularly memorable are J.M. Kerrigan and Barlowe Borland who seem like they stepped out of "The Old Dark House". Little bits of sophisticated comedy thrown into the script help keep this entertaining, and there seems to be a bit of chemistry between Lowe and Barrie that sadly does not get to be developed. Bruce Lester, the young actor paired with Barrie, has absolutely no spark with her, which provides the romantic subplot with no real future. Still, it's a passable time-filler that well not quite perfect, isn't as bad as I had expected.
What is good about this film is the way it is set up, with character actors seemingly out of a horror film, giving creepy performances and holding your attention every time they are on screen. Particularly memorable are J.M. Kerrigan and Barlowe Borland who seem like they stepped out of "The Old Dark House". Little bits of sophisticated comedy thrown into the script help keep this entertaining, and there seems to be a bit of chemistry between Lowe and Barrie that sadly does not get to be developed. Bruce Lester, the young actor paired with Barrie, has absolutely no spark with her, which provides the romantic subplot with no real future. Still, it's a passable time-filler that well not quite perfect, isn't as bad as I had expected.