Homicide for Three

Homicide for Three (1948)

There is a seeming waste of talent here in a Republic (small studio) B-movie that isn't quite dramatic or funny enough to take off. So it sinks under the weight of its frivolous plot, which I think it more or less intended to do. What I mean is, it was a lighthearted movie that would have played with a heavier A-movie feature. By itself it's not enough.

But it's worth noticing the very real, honest presence of the main actress, a lively and natural Audrey Long (seen in "Born to Kill" in a similar but secondary role). You can almost watch the movie just for her ease and "American" cheerfulness. Her counterpart is stiff by comparison, and the supporting cast gets worse from there (including a supposed detective that is so wooden he's concrete, though he has a passing resemblance to Lon Chaney Jr.). There are attempts to spice it up, even including some perplexing overview shots of a circus (they couldn't afford to really set up a circus for a shoot).

Mostly we have a series of rooms of various kinds and some lightly entertaining twists as two hapless lovers get dragged further and further into a plot with some absurd coincidences. All in fun, but try "Born to Kill" first, or Long's other known film, "Desperate," both great 1947 noirs.