Linda Impostora

John Braun, healthy and athletic model for his fitness enterprise, gets fatally ill and on the next day changes his will, leaving everything to his company. John locks himself up in his study, but Nikki goes to talk with him. She waits in the anteroom, but finds herself locked in and when they finally manage to open the door, they find Braun sitting at his desk, stabbed, and both the will and the murder weapon missing.

The first Ellery Queen to star Ralph Bellamy is a lively mix of humour and murder with the chemistry between Bellamy and Lindsay being the shining part of the film. The mystery itself is your usual locked room murder with a household of suspects.

Now THERE's a mystery if ever there was one: John Braun, who's always been the perfectly healthy and athletic model for his fitness enterprise, learns that he's incurably ill - and changes his will the next day, disinheriting his family and leaving everything to his company. His daughter's friend Nikki goes to his home to talk to him right after he's signed the will and locked himself up in his study. She waits in the anteroom - and soon finds out that she can't get out, because the other door is locked as well; and when they finally manage to open the door, they find Braun sitting at his desk, stabbed, and both the will and the murder weapon missing - which leaves Nikki as the ONLY person who could have committed the murder...

In this third 'Ellery Queen' mystery, Ralph Bellamy for the first time plays the police detective's son, writer, and hobby sleuth; and he does quite well, although he isn't quite as charming and funny as Donald Cook in the first one - he's more the serious, clever, and slightly ironic type. But the center of attraction (in every way) is Margaret Lindsay as Nikki, who is TRAPPED in every sense of the word...

This is one of the movies to which should be added 'Don't tell the ending to anyone!' - because it REALLY takes a crime film or novel expert to solve the case. Classic murder mystery at its best here!

When health-farm magnate Fred Niblo is found murdered in his study, suspicion falls on aspiring detective-story writer Nikki Porter, as played by Margaret Lindsay, who was the last person to see him. Fortunately Ellery Queen, in the person of Ralph Bellamy, decides she's innocent and to crack the case himself.

It's the first of four movies that Bellamy starred in as Queen for Columbia, with Charley Grapewin as his father. It's a locked room mystery, but not a particularly good one; after the first couple of reelsw to establish the characters and look over the crime scene with the Queens, there's half an hour of comedy, as Bellamy hides Miss Lindsay away in the apartment he shares with Grapewin, as a cook. Even so, director Kurt Neumann and a capable cast make this half-hour story watchable over more than twice that time.

Ralph Bellamy and Margaret Lindsay investigate a murder and have a good time doing it in this entertaining comedy.

Bellamy is a clever and playful Ellery Queen. "Did you buy this book?" he teases the police detective who asks him to autograph his latest book. "I've missed several from my study lately."

Lindsay is also fun as Nikki Porter, a would-be mystery writer herself. She has a shelf full of Ellery Queen's books but claims she can't stand him. Naturally the two soon meet, start bickering immediately, and only gradually become friends and allies.

The plot includes a murder but it's mainly an excuse to get Ellery and Nikki together. Nikki gets herself trapped in the outer office of a cranky millionaire who then dies mysteriously in the inner office. Ellery helps Nikki escape before the cops arrive. While the police look for Nikki, who has left her fingerprints all over, she hides out in Ellery's house--which of course is also the home of Ellery's father, Inspector Queen, who is investigating the murder.

That sounds like a dangerous ordeal but Nikki proves she is game: "You know something, Ellery?" she says after a narrow escape. "I'm beginning to like being a murder suspect. As long as they don't catch me."

Charley Grapewin is a colorful and fast-talking Inspector Queen. James Burke is fun as loyal assistant Sergeant Velle.

The murder suspects barely appear--this really is much more a comedy than a traditional whodunit. The stars eventually do some detecting but the focus is almost always on lively banter rather than murder clues. Overall, it's no showcase for amazing skills of deduction...but it is very easy to watch.

Ellery Queen had made two (2) previous appearances during the 1930s. THE Spanish CAPE MYSTERY (1935) Liberty Pictures, featuring Donald Cook and THE MANDARIN MYSTERY (1936) Republic Pictures, with the light-weight Eddie Quillan. Producer Larry Darmour cornered the rights to the Ellery Queen novels and through Columbia Pictures and Harry Cohn launched a new series of films. Starting with ELLERY QUEEN, Master Detective (1940).

Ralph Bellamy for the first four (4) pictures played 'QUEEN' with Margaret Lindsay as romantic interest and side-kick, 'NIKKI PORTER'. Bellamy after a strong start at RKO had slipped into character parts and second leads by the latter half of the 1930s. The same could be said about Ms. Lindsay over from Warner Brothers. This series kept them working and in the company of other professionals like Charlie Grapewine as Inspector Queen. Here also was Marsha Hunt, up and comer on loan-out from M.G.M. and Katherine DeMille who plugged in character parts too her other interests. Former Silent Director Fred Niblo (BEN-HUR, 1925) also picked up a check. For plot details, read the synopsis, it's all there.

Bellamy plays 'QUEEN' with a light touch, but with a earnest intelligence, making him a viable character. Ms. Lindsay also hits her mark with a attractive appearance and winning smile. Though She seems to wear the same suit the entire film. The rest of the cast and a quick running time makes this a worth while watch. After the first four (4) films William Gargan would pick up the 'QUEEN' mantle with Ms. Lindsay soldiering on. Gargan proved a acceptable replacement and would rate the entire series a even IMDB******Six(6) or a Standard Rating of Two(2)**Stars.