Ellery Queen and the Perfect Crime

Ralph Bellamy is again Ellery Queen, this time in Ellery Queen and the Perfect Crime.

A crooked stockbroker (Douglas Dumbrille), knowing a project he and his clients have stock in is going down, sells his shares and sells short. He doesn't mention it to his other clients, one of whom (H. B. Warner) bankrupt.

The stockbroker is found dead, and his estranged son (John Beal) is an immediate suspect. It's up to Ellery, his dad, and his sidekick (Margaret Lindsay) to figure out what really went on and who is responsible.

Not bad.

Well, don't let the title lead you astray - this murder plot is, though complicated and twisted enough, far from perfect in the way of logic, because the authors just hide too many facts, present us more suspects than Chandler and scatter more red herrings than Agatha Christie... But it certainly IS fun guessing all the way (and Nikki's idea isn't even bad; it MIGHT have been the solution just as well!), although I doubt if many viewers will really find the murderer at last.

Anyway, this movie, the third one where Ralph Bellamy plays 'Ellery Queen', differs from the previous ones in a welcome way: it takes things less serious and 'allows' some jokes to be thrown in. So you can really prepare yourself for an enjoyable 'whodunit' with moments of suspense as well as fun!

Ralph Bellamy is Ellery, Margaret Lindsay is Nikki Porter, and Charley Grapewin is Inspector Queen in this episode of the series that Larry Darmour released through Columbia. Shady power company head Douglas Dumbrille knows his company's dam has broken. He sells his shares and shorts more, but tells his investors everything is fine. After the news come out and everyone is ruined but him, Dumbrille is killed, and it's up to Ellery and the long-suffering Nikki to set things aright.

It's a handsomely cast production, with John Beal, Spring Byington, Sidney Blackmer and the ubiquitous Charles Lane rounding out the cast. B specialist James Hogan directs for speed, and the truth will come out in less than 70 minutes.

Ralph Bellamy makes the third of four appearances as "master detective" Ellery Queen in Columbia's Ellery Queen and the Perfect Crime. The principal villain is crooked stockbroker John Mathews (Douglass Dumbrille), whose Wall Street manipulations render Ray Jarden (H. B. Warner) penniless. Mathews' chicanery seems particularly coldblooded, inasmuch as his daughter Marian (Linda Hayes) is engaged to Jarden's son Walter (John Beal). When the latter disappears, Mathews asks Ellery Queen to locate the young man.

An entertaining enough Ellery Queen mystery that has humour and plenty of monkey business. The suspects are quite diverse, one of them is Spring Byington who steals every scene she is in. She's dizzy one minute and callous the next. The ending, though, could've been clearer. The zaniness needed to be reined in a bit.

There have been tons of Ellery Queens over the years in the movies and on TV and Ralph Bellamy does an admirable job in this flick. There's a lot of humor in the film. Spring Byington as a dotty matron who thinks more of her pet monkey than her family is a lot of fun, though you're never quite sure if she is as dotty as she seems. Bellamy is unflappable, jaunty and confident in the title role. His relationship and repartee with his secretary are delightful. There's a very funny scene with Ellery at an auction of the contents of a country house. The mystery isn't a bad one, though there's a good chance you will eliminate enough suspects on your own to figure out whodunnit. That won't take away from the fun of viewing. If you like the Falcon series with George Sanders and Tom Conway, you'll probably enjoy this, if you can find it. I have a copy only because I caught it on TV once and taped it. Someone ought to restore the print and issue it on DVD so everyone can enjoy Bellamy in a fine comedy-mystery role.