The Patient in Room 18

A very competent film made by Warner Brothers in 1938. Good performances by Patric Knowles and Ann Sheridan and of course by one of my favorite character actors, Charles Trowbridge!! All about the murder of a patient and then stolen radium and then solving this whodunit!! Warner Brothers had a knack for churning out these type of "B" movies and they are very good at it. I could spend all day watching this type of film. If you get the chance to see this film, then you should, as it only is around an hour long and very entertaining!!

Private Thatcher Hospital is suffering a spate of murders, but THE PATIENT IN ROOM 18 - a young detective recovering from a nervous breakdown - is determined to find the killer.

Fast-moving & fun, this is another example of the comedy crime picture that Warner Brothers was so expert at producing almost without effort. Casts & plots could be shuffled endlessly, with very predictable results. While this assembly line approach created few classics, audience enjoyment could usually be assured.

Patric Knowles & Ann Sheridan spark the action here. As a convalescing detective & stern head nurse with romantic difficulties in their recent past, they keep the plot racing - especially after murder rears its ugly head. Knowles, who never quite graduated to starring roles in major pictures, shows a fine flair for comedy. Sleepwalking down the street dressed in pajamas & bowler, he is indeed a very droll sight. Sheridan shows flashes of the talent that would eventually make her an important star at Warner Brothers.

Unfortunately, the two most potentially interesting characters in the film - Eric Stanley's English valet & Greta Meyer's German cook - are given very little to do. And what about the film's other mystery: just what is so special about Room 18?

Patric Knowles is noted author and crime specialist Lance O'Leary. He has been acting strangely after failing to solve a case and winds up in the hospital with a nervous breakdown. The doctor prescribes him rest and an absolute ban on anything to do with crime solving. Ann Sheridan is nurse Sara Keate, who tends to Lance and runs the hospital ward. Nurse Keate is Lance's girlfriend, is currently mad at him, and turns out to have an investigative streak of her own.

The setup is definitely comedy, and while the plot involves murder and missing radium, the emphasis is mostly on laughs in this modestly entertaining B mystery.

A rich patient has just bought the hospital $100,000 worth of radium and then checked right in. They put him in room 18 and he goes off to sleep with the radium taped to his chest. (Yes, taped to his chest--partly to safeguard the radium but mainly for the excellent health benefits.) Almost immediately the patient is murdered by a shadowy figure; the radium disappears. Who did it?

Among the suspects are a lawyer, a doctor, and various other characters who sneak around the hospital acting suspiciously. The police are called in, of course, but they seem perfectly happy to let Lance work on the case, while Nurse Keate gathers clues as well.

The plot really isn't much but Knowles and Sheridan are fun to watch. Knowles's best trick is hiding a lit cigarette in his mouth--until Sheridan catches him at it. Like that old trick, this movie is nothing particularly original but plenty enjoyable nevertheless.

Lesser known Patric Knowles is Lance O'Leary, who has been acting goofy. walking around town in his jammies. so they lock him up in the Thatcher Hospital for rest and relaxation. and of course, there's drama going on at that institution. there's a large amount of radium being kept here for "treatment". and someone steals it. and kills a patient. in spite of that, it's all light and fluffy. the cops and now O'Leary are all trying to solve the case. amusing, but there are a couple plot holes. Ann Sheridan's career was still rising when she made this in 1938... her big roles would come in They Drive by Night and Man Who Came to Dinner, a couple years later. Based on the novel by Mignon Eberhart. had nine novels turned into film. directed by Bobby Connolly, who died young at 46, but was nominated for four oscars, for dance. this one is okay.

It must be difficult to cast support players in a movie where even the stars are B List. Warner's does it's best with stock players like Cliff Clark, Charles Trowbridge, Frank Orth, and John Ridgely. All reliable - all competent. Ann Sheridan as the love interest does well enough. There is something appealing about her. The problem lies with Patric Knowles. For those of us that remember him fondly as Will Scarlett in The Adventures of Robin Hood this movie, as well as so many other efforts, are a disappointment. Warner Bros continued to try to find a niche for him - and failed. They tried him as a pathetic coward and weakling in Five Came Back. They tried him in a half dozen light romantic comedies - no luck. He eventually fizzled into obscure supporting roles. Too bad. He was a genuinely likable guy.

Oh, the movie. Well, it's a medical mystery. At 60 minutes running time, it had no choice but to move at a rapid pace. That doesn't make it good, it just makes it short. I happen to be a fan of these potboilers, but there ain't many of us. You have to wonder where they dig these things up from. Buried deep in some film library until some 3rd assistant researcher digs it out. It sits in a cardboard box in some programmers office until he totally runs out of ideas for the 2am slot. He tosses into the que as a filler and nobody notices. Bingo! It makes air and I'm thrilled.

This movie was made in 1938 and it really is dated. The men walk around the house in tuxedos and dressing gowns. All the cops have a New York Irish accent and smoke cigars. All rich people had white telephones. Bodies fall out of the closet. The medical procedures make one shudder. For example: A patient has a mystery medical condition and they tape 100K worth of Radium to his chest. As I recall, radium was a miracle cure for everything back then.

If I sound like I'm down on this movie, I didn't mean to. Movies like this one couldn't be made anymore. There is more acting and writing talent in this 3 week wonder than you will find in most movies made today. You don't have to take it seriously, but take the time to watch it.