Starring Chester Morris, Vivienne Osborne, Frank McHugh, Allen Jenkins, Henry Stephenson
Directed by Ray Enright
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)
A crime novelist researching a book on a killer calling himself "The Black Ace" tries to protect a wealthy man who's been targeted by the criminal.
Although there's not much original here, with familiar elements such as a mysterious killer who leaves a calling card, a pair of dim-witted bumbling detectives, and lights that go out at pivotal moments, there's still some entertainment to be had. Morris is an affable lead who may or may not be the villain, the screenplay does a good job of introducing a number of other suspects, and McHugh and Jenkins amuse without being too grating. There's even a small role for familiar serial villain Charles Middleton. The end result is a film not all that different from mysteries put out before or since, but this one's better than most.
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