Starring Patric Knowles, Ann Sheridan, Eric Stanley, John Ridgely, Rosella Towne
Directed by Bobby Connolly & Crane Wilbur
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)
Private detective Lance O'Leary, after a nervous breakdown, ends up in a hospital, where he's soon pressed into service after a man is murdered for a fortune in radium.
Knowles headlines this murder mystery from Warner Brothers, paired with Sheridan as the sarcastic nurse determined to give him a hard time, although she loves him as well. There's a good supporting cast, with Stanley as Knowles' manservant, Charles Trowbridge as one of the chief doctors, and Ralph Sanford as the typical ornery cigar-chomping police detective. The script has a solid plot behind it, setting up plenty of suspects, but there's lots of comic relief as well, with Knowles constantly poking fun at Sanford, and Sheridan giving Knowles the business just as much. I enjoyed the film, and was glad to see the studio did follow through with a sequel with Sheridan, Mystery House, although Knowles was replaced in the lead.
Showing posts with label Patric Knowles. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Patric Knowles. Show all posts
Sunday, August 16, 2020
Wednesday, December 5, 2018
The Strange Case Of Doctor Rx (1942)
Starring Patric Knowles, Lionel Atwill, Anne Gwynne, Samuel S. Hinds, Mona Barrie
Directed by William Nigh
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)
A successful detective is lured out of a planned retirement to tackle the case of a murderer who targets mob bosses who've been acquitted as his victims.
This mystery from Universal Pictures has a few horror elements and plenty of regulars at the studio in the cast, who are fun to spot and offer numerous red herrings for the audience to puzzle over. The film also has a double dose of comic relief with Mantan Moreland serving as Knowles' valet, and Shemp Howard assisting Edmund MacDonald's police captain. Howard in particular is hilarious, and Moreland has some rare dramatic scenes when he's taken captive by Doctor Rx. I've read somewhere that the screenplay went through a lot of revisions and some scenes may have been ad-libbed. Whatever the results it's definitely an unusual balance of comedy and drama, which led my friend Dan Day Jr. to call it one of Universal's weirdest films. I like it, but it's definitely a departure.
Directed by William Nigh
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)
A successful detective is lured out of a planned retirement to tackle the case of a murderer who targets mob bosses who've been acquitted as his victims.
This mystery from Universal Pictures has a few horror elements and plenty of regulars at the studio in the cast, who are fun to spot and offer numerous red herrings for the audience to puzzle over. The film also has a double dose of comic relief with Mantan Moreland serving as Knowles' valet, and Shemp Howard assisting Edmund MacDonald's police captain. Howard in particular is hilarious, and Moreland has some rare dramatic scenes when he's taken captive by Doctor Rx. I've read somewhere that the screenplay went through a lot of revisions and some scenes may have been ad-libbed. Whatever the results it's definitely an unusual balance of comedy and drama, which led my friend Dan Day Jr. to call it one of Universal's weirdest films. I like it, but it's definitely a departure.
Friday, May 4, 2018
Frankenstein Meets The Wolf Man (1943)
Starring Lon Chaney Jr., Ilona Massey, Patric Knowles, Lionel Atwill, Bela Lugosi
Directed by Roy William Neill
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)
After being brought back to life, Lawrence Talbot seeks to find a way to end his cursed existence as The Wolf Man, and goes in search of help from the famed Dr. Frankenstein.
The first meeting of Universal Monsters has many elements to recommend it, including a number of atmospheric scenes, the vibrant and energetic "Festival Of The New Wine" performance, and of course the climactic confrontation between the Wolf Man (played by Chaney Jr.) and Frankenstein's monster (played by Lugosi). Unfortunately the cutting of the Monster's dialogue turns him into a bit player in the film, and I know the reason it was cut was because Lugosi's voice was considered unusable, but it would have added clarity (particularly to viewers who didn't remember the Monster's blindness from The Ghost Of Frankenstein) and more of a unique personality to the creature. The film is also slow-moving at times, and really could have used an original score to help buoy the picture through those passages, instead of an assemblage of stock music. Nevertheless, it's still a classic in my mind, and it's good to see Universal stalwarts like Dwight Frye and Lionel Atwill returning, along with an entertaining role for Rex Evans as the portly, mustachioed and vengeance-seeking barkeep Vazec.
Directed by Roy William Neill
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)
After being brought back to life, Lawrence Talbot seeks to find a way to end his cursed existence as The Wolf Man, and goes in search of help from the famed Dr. Frankenstein.
The first meeting of Universal Monsters has many elements to recommend it, including a number of atmospheric scenes, the vibrant and energetic "Festival Of The New Wine" performance, and of course the climactic confrontation between the Wolf Man (played by Chaney Jr.) and Frankenstein's monster (played by Lugosi). Unfortunately the cutting of the Monster's dialogue turns him into a bit player in the film, and I know the reason it was cut was because Lugosi's voice was considered unusable, but it would have added clarity (particularly to viewers who didn't remember the Monster's blindness from The Ghost Of Frankenstein) and more of a unique personality to the creature. The film is also slow-moving at times, and really could have used an original score to help buoy the picture through those passages, instead of an assemblage of stock music. Nevertheless, it's still a classic in my mind, and it's good to see Universal stalwarts like Dwight Frye and Lionel Atwill returning, along with an entertaining role for Rex Evans as the portly, mustachioed and vengeance-seeking barkeep Vazec.
Saturday, April 16, 2016
Who Done It? (1942)
Starring Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, Patric Knowles, William Gargan, Louise Allbritton
Directed by Erle C. Kenton
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)
A pair of sandwich counter workers at a radio station try to solve a murder committed in the building, but end up becoming suspects themselves.
A winning outing from the Abbott & Costello comedy team in one of their earliest pictures, this film has gags and routines a plenty and not all of them work, but there's still plenty of amusing moments. Although the mystery at the film's center is fairly basic and not particularly well structured, that's not what we're here for, and the comedic duo is in fine form against the whodunit backdrop. There's also a fine roster of character actors peppered throughout the film, including Thomas Gomez, Ludwig Stossel, Mary Wickes, Jerome Cowan, and William Bendix.
Directed by Erle C. Kenton
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)
A pair of sandwich counter workers at a radio station try to solve a murder committed in the building, but end up becoming suspects themselves.
A winning outing from the Abbott & Costello comedy team in one of their earliest pictures, this film has gags and routines a plenty and not all of them work, but there's still plenty of amusing moments. Although the mystery at the film's center is fairly basic and not particularly well structured, that's not what we're here for, and the comedic duo is in fine form against the whodunit backdrop. There's also a fine roster of character actors peppered throughout the film, including Thomas Gomez, Ludwig Stossel, Mary Wickes, Jerome Cowan, and William Bendix.
Tuesday, January 12, 2016
The Mystery Of Marie Roget (1942)
Starring Patric Knowles, Maria Montez, Maria Ouspenskaya, John Litel, Edward Norris
Directed by Phil Rosen
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)
Dupin, a forensic scientist for the French police during the late 19th century, tries to determine what's happened to entertainer Marie Roget, whose disappearance may be hiding a different crime.
Based on a composition by Edgar Allan Poe, one might have expected a darker film, but this is light and frothy entertainment, although there's murder in the offing. I've heard Poe's Dupin was an inspiration for Conan Doyle's creation of Sherlock Holmes, and Knowles' character is certainly a master of deduction like Sherlock, although without any of his personality. The film is structured around Dupin being always one step ahead of the prefect of police played with appropriate bluster by Lloyd Corrigan, and as such the screenplay doesn't give us much time to get to know the characters, although there's a feast of fine actors in the cast. Still, it's an amusing and entertaining film.
Directed by Phil Rosen
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)
Dupin, a forensic scientist for the French police during the late 19th century, tries to determine what's happened to entertainer Marie Roget, whose disappearance may be hiding a different crime.
Based on a composition by Edgar Allan Poe, one might have expected a darker film, but this is light and frothy entertainment, although there's murder in the offing. I've heard Poe's Dupin was an inspiration for Conan Doyle's creation of Sherlock Holmes, and Knowles' character is certainly a master of deduction like Sherlock, although without any of his personality. The film is structured around Dupin being always one step ahead of the prefect of police played with appropriate bluster by Lloyd Corrigan, and as such the screenplay doesn't give us much time to get to know the characters, although there's a feast of fine actors in the cast. Still, it's an amusing and entertaining film.
Sunday, October 27, 2013
The Wolf Man (1941)
Starring Lon Chaney, Jr., Claude Rains, Warren William, Ralph Bellamy, Patric Knowles
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)
Young Larry Talbot returns home to manage his ancestral estate, where he tries to save a woman killed by a wolf, but after he's bitten, he soon begins to fear he could now be a werewolf.
Lon Chaney, Jr. stars in what became his most iconic role, that of the tortured Larry Talbot, cursed to transform into the bestial Wolf Man during the full moon. It's a classic film, with a good cast of character actors, great foggy atmosphere, and a first-rate musical score. Although Chaney would make scores more movies, he probably never got as terrific a showcase again, but went on to reprise the character in four more films. There's some gaffes, with Chaney starting to transform into the Wolf Man in one set of clothes and then appearing in a completely different outfit as the monster, as well as the werewolf at the beginning of the film being played by an actual wolf rather than an actor. But these are easily overlooked in this gem of a movie.
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