csteidler

Vaguely sinister doctor George Zucco runs a private hospital. Distant relative Bela Lugosi arrives for an unexpected visit. Zucco's daughter-in-law Molly Lamont has a secret - apparently something really bad.

Joining this trio are various standard murder mystery characters who essentially loaf around the hospital waiting for something to happen:

Nat Pendleton is a former cop looking for a murder to solve so he can get back on the force; Douglas Fowley is a smart aleck newspaper reporter looking for a scoop; Joyce Compton is Fowley's girlfriend, enlisted to help watch for clues and get in the way.

This would-be thriller makes little sense but is nevertheless lots of fun. The story is told mainly in flashback, with frequent bits of narration spoken by a dead woman lying in the morgue. It's filmed in Cinecolor, which gives the film a unique look but also points up just how weak the rest of the production values are.

A curiosity worth watching for those who enjoy B movies, no matter how goofy.

Boris Karloff is the efficient proprietor of Happy's, the kind of nightclub where every customer has a bottle hidden underneath the table.

Amidst a variety of sinister goings-on, chorus girl Mae Clark steps out of her way to help sad young man Lew Ayres pull himself together. Drunk and pathetic, Ayres hangs out at the club every night to mope over a family tragedy.

Gambling and bootlegging, a bit of fisticuffs, and some nice chorus line dancing finally lead up to a bit of noisy excitement in the last few minutes of this tidy, hard-boiled drama.

A solid cast also includes Clarence Muse as a philosophical doorman, George Raft as a gambler who has his eye on Clark, and Dorothy Revier as Karloff's wife.

Mae Clark and Lew Ayres are fine as the leading couple whose relationship is less a romance than a mutual impulse to rescue each other. And it's definitely fun to see Boris Karloff in a straight non-horror role. Overall, a grim but rather moving story.

Relatives are gathered at the mansion to hear the rich old lady's will. Looking for a bargain, real estate agent Broderick Crawford and antique dealer Hugh Herbert crash the party, much to the annoyance of both the family and the old lady herself, who is not planning to die just yet.

Soon there is a mysterious death and Crawford sticks around to sort the suspects. Nephew Basil Rathbone is very suspicious; his wife Gladys Cooper is also behaving oddly; grouchy young relative Alan Ladd is offensive to just about everyone. Then there's Gale Sondergaard as the appropriately spooky housekeeper, and Bela Lugosi as the handyman who doesn't say much but always seems to be hanging around.

Crawford dashes up and down stairs chasing clues, and also finds time to romance Anne Gwynn, another potential heir who may or may not be interested in him. Hugh Hubert is strictly comic relief, wandering from room to room picking up antiques and muttering to himself, looking and behaving an awful lot like Lou Costello.

One funny scene: Crawford spots Lugosi out in the rainy yard, hoisting a sack into the back of a wagon. Crawford races out, grabs away the bag and tears it open, expecting a dead body - and instead releases a load of cats who quickly scatter, much to the chagrin of Lugosi, who was taking them in out of the rain and now has to go round them all up again.

No real thrills here but it's fun - definitely more spoof than thriller.