Inspector Hornleigh

"Inspector Hornleigh" is a delightful British comedy mystery. With the exception of Alastair Sim, few of the cast of this film would be recognized by audiences much past the mid-20th century. Gordon Harker, who has the lead as Inspector Hornleigh, had a long list of films to his credit by 1939. Although he played in some comedies and other films, his specialty was crime and mysteries. He often played an officer of the law, but had an occasional role on the opposite side of the law. Here, Harker's inspector is a wise investigator who has a sometimes comical or goofy sidekick, Sergeant Bingham. And that role is played wonderfully by Alastair Sim.

Sim had only been in the cinema since 1935, but had a slew of films under his belt. He was at the point in his career where he would get varying top roles from leading actor to top supporting actor or other significant character. Here, he adds some good humor as Hornleigh tackles a murder and theft of high government papers that could wreak havoc on the British economy.

Here are a couple of favorite lines from the film.

Chancellor, "My dear inspector, I may be only a politician, but I can identify my own property."

Michael Kavanos, "I never know whether you English are serious, joking, or mad."

I am a sucker for a good whodunit, and "Inspector Hornleigh" was an excellent one. It had an elaborate plot and I could not guess the murderer until... come to think of it, I didn't guess the murderer until it was revealed at the end of the picture, so well-written was the screenplay. And, brother, it was written, and written, and...

This picture was loaded with dialogue, enough for 2 or 3 pictures, but in the end I felt it was all worth it. I enjoy Gordon Harker more each time I see him and he is very convincing when playing a police inspector. Here he is Insp. Hornleigh of the title, and he was every bit as good as he was as Insp. Elk in "The Frog" (1937). He is aided by Alastair Sim, playing his weak-minded sidekick police sergeant. Speaking for myself, I did not mind his antics, as films of the 30's and early 40's often tried to blend comedy and mystery, more often than not a futile effort, I have found. But it worked here.

The rest of the cast was competent, although two of the suspects looked very much alike, causing occasional confusion. Another reviewer mentioned that the sets looked cheap - that may be, but I gave it a pass and was not conscious of an effort to pinch pennies in any phase of the production.

All in all, a worthy effort and worth your while, because I always feel that, ultimately, the play's the thing, don't you?

Firstly, Miki Hood - what a beautiful young lady! I wonder why she never made it big because she's absolutely lovely. She looks like a Disney princess who could be another sister of Loretta Young.

This film is based on a long running popular radio show, with professional cockney Gordon Harker as the personable sleuth. With a long track record of good scriptwriting, the story used for this is intelligent and intriguing. Eugene Forde - never heard of him - directs this adequately and ensures the tension ramps up at a good pace.

Like another other forgotten detective series: Philo Vance, it's the plot rather than the characters which the Horleigh stories rely on. Harker does however give his grumpy old copper a bit of personality which makes this a hundred times better and engaging than the tiresome Vance movies. It's hardly Hitchcock or Holmes, Poirot or even THIN MAN but although it's not super-original, it is professionally made, well acted and well written.

I wonder how many people have been fooled, over the years, that Alastair Sim stars in this movie as the title character; in fact, he plays Inspector Hornleigh's dimwitted sidekick (imagine a dumber Doctor Watson), and the role is largely a waste of his considerable talents. The film itself is stuffy and creaky, with a mystery plot that's uninteresting and murky. *1/2 out of 4.

Re-watched "Inspector Hornleigh" (1939) with Gordon Harker and Alastair Sim. This is the first of three "Inspector Hornleigh" films made 1939-1941. I've seen this one twice before. For modern tastes, may have a tad too much lightness and comedic input simultaneously delivered with dramatic incident. Alastair Sim is the butt of many retorts of Hornleigh (Harker). Many, many of the scenes are ended with a tersely comic, almost satirical bent, and though British films were ubiquitous with such tropes in the early sound period, as were a number of Hollywood films of like character, today's films have definitely gone away from such progression unless they have the light-hearted nature of Roger Moore's Bond films. Those retain a certain similar flavor. This one has a murder, and through the intrepidness of Harker, plus some little help from his partner, Sim, they find their nemesis. However, I must admit, from the first time through to this time, the solution seems like a fix to the whole, a tad too easy, and certainly not the person anyone would suspect. The ending happens as if - oops, we've spent the budget; wrap it up. It's a fun little film, but it's just that: a little film. Great actors in a secondary film. The fact that two sequels were made: well, that just shows you how good the actors are! The film's a lot of fun. Just don't expect "Citizen Kane"...