Four Hours to Kill!

This excellent little picture is so packed with plot you'll never believe it lasts just 70 minutes. Its energy, intensity and overall mood makes this feel like a nostalgic tribute to those super-fast moving early Warner gangster films.

The main plot is about a policeman taking an escaped convict back to prison with four hours to kill before their train leaves - so they wait in a theatre. Given the right material, Richard Barthelmess could be a superb and sensitive actor. This isn't just good material but it has high production levels and dynamic and innovative direction - Barthelmess consequently gives one of the most moving performances of the decade. It's quite an achievement to convey such humanity and emotion without a trace of sentimentality in such a short time.

His performance is complimented by the normally inconspicuous Charles Wilson who in this portrays a very believable, very human cop. His policeman is such a pleasant change from the usual thuggish or idiot one dimensional flatfoot that infested 1930s cinema.

The rest of the cast in the various sub-plots are also real people giving this picture a wonderful slice of real life feel. You're really transported to the 1930s. Mitchell Leisen folds all his themes and stories together perfectly creating an exciting, emotionally charged and thoroughly entertaining hour and a bit. Not too sure about Ray Milland though - I'll never ever forgive him for double crossing Jimmy Cagney and Joan Blondell in BLONDE CRAZY!

I noticed one of the reviewers said this film is a lot like "Grand Hotel" and I agree. Like this famous MGM movie, "Four Hours to Kill!" is a film with several stories that are interwoven together. What ties them all together is the location but instead of a hotel the setting is a theater.

When the film begins, a police officer is supposed to take an escaped prisoner, Mako (Richard Barthelmess), back to prison but they missed the train. So, with four hours to kill, he takes the handcuffed prisoner with him to the theater. In the meantime, you see several other stories unfold including one about Eddie and a woman trying to extort money out of him for breach of promise, a nasty cad (Ray Milland) meeting a married woman as well as a nervous guy (Roscoe Karnes) waiting in the theater as his wife is nearby in labor.

All of the stories are interesting and the acting quite nice--particularly by Barthelmess. I had a hard time imagining this nice-guy actor playing a thug but he and his accent were quite convincing. All in all, the film is entertaining, well written and one of the better pictures of the day. Not quite a "Grand Hotel" but still quite nice. My only apprehension is the Police Captain-- his character and the acting for him were poor and unconvincing....but this is only a minor quibble.

Observing the fates of several diverse characters in the lobby of a theatre while a musical is being performed, Four Hours to Kill is pretty obviously a lower-budget imitation of Grand Hotel. But I'll take it over its more opulent cousin any day. Paramount's dramas were always edgier and more eccentric than MGM's, and still pack surprises for modern viewers. Mitchell Leisen directs with his usual aplomb, but it's really writer Norman Krasna who is ultimately responsible for the picture's success. It's marvellous to see how he interweaves the various story lines and sneaks in new plot revelations every few minutes as the tales intersect with each other. At the same time, he fills in the edges with neat comic vignettes.

There's plenty of pre-code material on hand – one of the major plot points deals with abortion and blackmail (alluded to obliquely, but it's quite obvious nonetheless), which contrasts nicely with the comedy-relief thread of Roscoe Karns's nervous expectant father. Young Ray Milland plays a caddish gigolo whose acquisitive plotting is inadvertently revealed to his married lover, and the most sympathetic character is an outright murderer on his way to the gallows. The latter is played by Richard Barthelmess in his usual insular, haunted style, which is a perfect fit. Fans of "It's a Wonderful Life" will chuckle when Henry Travers insists "Don't You Believe in Miracles?" at one point.

We hear the musical's score, provided by Paramount team Robin & Rainger, but the plot unfolds out in the lobby, among the staircases, lavatories, phone booths, and side alleys of the theatre, and we never do see a dot of the musical staging. This should be enough of an inducement for those who love old movies, but can't abide old musicals. The nice ingenue couple (singer Joe Morrison, without a song, and pretty Helen Mack, quivering voice intact) is up against a bitter blonde (Dorothy Tree), while the manager (hey, that's Clarence from IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE!) is trying to keep his lobby in working order. Roscoe Karns serves up marvelous concern for his expectant father routine, talk about dating a concept! Gertrude Michael, pulling off soft & alluring while retaining her sophisticate aplomb is matched with a remarkable Ray Milland, here giving you a nice example of future rotter qualities. Gertrude happens to wear one heck of a smart hat, though it's the careless loss of her diamond pin that causes such concern. Watch for silent lady Olive Tell as an older woman married to a much younger man, but the most interesting line involves escaped thug Richard Barthelmess and the relationship he develops while killing four hours with his captor, well-played by Charles C. Wilson (cast in a much larger role than usual.) Indeed, there might be a much higher interest in Barthelmess' talkie period if FOUR HOURS TO KILL were more readily available for viewing, for he not only serves as a compelling center for this film, but turns in one of his most subdued, thoughtful, and unexpectedly detailed performances. Blending seemingly mundane details with the lives of interesting folks portrayed by good performers, FOUR HOURS TO KILL provides enough content, twists, and surprises to keep any mystery fan entertained. You will be pleasantly surprised.

A detective has "four hours to kill" at a music theater before he has to deliver his prisoner. This movie really is a copy of the "Grand Hotel" format. What makes this movie stand out is the music soundtrack. All the time the movie is going on there is a Broadway-style show going on in the background. The music is good! It makes you think that this would be a great show to see, but you never get to see it. This really is the reason that most people remember liking this movie, but they can't remember why. I really do not know if it is available on either DVD or VHS, or if it was released by the studio (Paramount?) It's an average move, but excellent soundtrack. Catch it if you like 30's show musicals.