By Whose Hand? (1932)

An escaped convict hides aboard a continental train, only a sassy newspaper reporter can save the day of course!

Killer Delmar (Nat Pendleton) is on the run. Reporter Jimmy (Ben Lyon) follows the police after news Delmar has been seen at the railway station. Jimmy joins the train, more due to his interest in Alice (Barbara Weeks) than anything else. On board the train Delmar is indeed hiding, a jeweller is also killed and his wares stolen...

This is not a bad film though the plot contains nothing that is surprising (the cops are clueless but the reporter is here to catch the criminal et cetera). The film could have done with a bit more budget to give the onboard train scenes a bit more polish though the location does give the film a claustrophobic feel which adds to the tension.

Rome Express (1932)

An enjoyable crime caper on board a cross-Europe express.

A group of passengers are heading off on a train in Paris for a trip to Rome. They are a motley collection of characters, including an adulterous couple, a film star trying to escape the limelight and a French police inspector. 

Aboard is a valuable painting which is stolen, this leads to murders (though not until some way into the film). There are, of course, many suspects! 

This is a fun film that takes place almost entirely on board the moving train. Neat little camera tricks and editing adds to the interest, though sometimes is a little too cute for it's own good. Conrad Veidt is excellent as the main baddie, exuding menace. Also good in the film is Gordon Harker as a very annoying man.

The Hound of the Baskervilles (1939)

An excellent Sherlock Holmes film.

Sherlock Holmes (Basil Rathbone) and Dr Watson (Nigel Bruce) are called to help to investigate a mysterious beast which is stalking the foggy moors. Young heir Sir Baskerville (Richard Greene) is in danger from this beast, but is the real danger from someone a bit more human...

Before the Rathbone-Bruce films entered the present day (well the 1940s), they did a couple of official Sherlock Holmes stories set in the correct period, of which this was the first. Their characters arn't quite set yet but they do a very good job with a classic story. 

Its a very atmospheric story though the foggy (and presumably chilly) moors reverberate with the sound of crickets for some reason.

The Bat Whispers (1930)

Not a great film but interesting from a historical and technical point of view.

Master criminal The Bat steals a necklace from under the police's noses, he then goes into the countryside. Pausing only to rob a bank, he then goes to a lonely country mansion to terrify the occupants including Miss van Gorder (Grayce Hampton) and Dale (Una Merkle). The police in the form of Chester Morris turn up to investigate, but who is The Bat?

This is a remake of the 1926 film The Bat, though this one has sound. It is a bit of a silly romp with plenty of overacting and nonsense but an enjoyable watch. 

This is one of the few films in the Magnifilm wide-screen format which didn't catch on. The film is also cited by Batman's creator as being part of the inspiration for the character.

Port of Missing Girls (1938)

Crime and melodrama on the high seas.

Singer Della (Judith Allen) witnesses a murder and is forced by the killer to go on the run with him, thus the police think she is an accomplice. She stows away on board a cargo ship captained by Storm (Harry Carey) - not the best name for a ship captain you'd think? 

She persuades the captain, who is painted as a "notorious woman hater" after his wife left him in the past, to let her stay (somewhat easily). First Mate Jim (Milburn Stone) falls in love with her, Della's troubles are by no means yet over. She is forced to hide out in a hide out in the South Seas which is obviously a brothel.

A decent little film, Jim and Della make a good couple which makes you care about them. The cast do a reasonable good job out of a rather flimsy plot.

The Lone Defender (Serial) (1930)

An enjoyable Western serial, the fabulous Rin Tin Tin stealing the show.

The mysterious Cactus Kid (Lee Shumway) and his gang kill a prospector but do not discover the location of his gold mine. The prospector's dog Rinty (Rin Tin Tin) recognises the killers - though of course he can't tell anyone! 

The Cactus Kid thinks the dog can lead him to the mine so tries to get his hands on the dog. Rinty meanwhile helps agent Ramon (Walter Miller) track down the identity of the Cactus Kid...

A decent enough serial with plenty of exciting cliff hangers. However, the story is maybe stretched a little too far in the serial format. The story probably would work better as a stand alone film, and indeed it was edited and reworked into such in 1934!

Alibi for Murder (1936)

A 1930s B-movie about a private detective and reporter who is (yes you guessed it) sassy and wise-cracking!

Perry (William Gargan) is trying to interview a reclusive scientist, while he is at the scientist's home trying to get to see him a shot is heard and the scientist is found dead. The murdered man's secretary Lois (Marguerite Churchill) helps Perry try and unravel a complicated case involving business rivals, military secrets and anti-war sentiment...

This is a typically fast moving crime drama with plenty of suspects and red herrings before we get to the final act and a fairly ingenious murder method. The plot is a bit hard to follow at times though but it doesn't really spoil the enjoyment that much. 

One interesting part of the film is early on when we see the scientist Stava (Egon Brecher) arrive back in the USA from Europe on the Hindenburg zeppelin!

Special Inspector (1938)

An inoffensive quota quickie, though unfortunately a lot of it takes place in the dark.

Someone is hijacking Canadian trucks carrying furs and selling the loot down in the US. US Agent Tom Evans (Charles Quigley) goes undercover as a driver and is soon the victim of another robbery, though somehow Patricia (Rita Hayworth) is involved - but on whose side? 

Tom continues undercover though when his identity is unveiled he, and Patricia, are in big trouble with the mob...

A reasonable film that plods along though not without much purpose or that much excitement. It isn't helped by a lot of the scenes taking place at night and indifferently lit. 

The film is not bad but not much more.

Homicide Bureau (1939)

An enjoyable police drama, though one with a bit of a missed opportunity.

Crime is out of control in the city, but the police are held back by the annoying fact they need to obey the law. Detective Jim Logan (Bruce Cabot) is tasked to investigate a murder which is mixed up with the scrap metal trade. Jim is foiled by the pesky need to get actual evidence, especially after the mob set him up for humiliation with fake evidence which is shown up by the new forensic scientist Bliss (Rita Hayworth). Under a cloud, Jim continues his investigation unofficially...

This is a good example of a 1930s crime B-movie. A complicated and involving plot is packed into a short film with some good performances and a good action set piece to finish proceedings. The one drawback is the fact Rita Hayworth is not used that much in the film, and lacks much in the way of chemistry with Bruce Cabot. However, that does not ruin the enjoyment too much.

Strange People (1933)

The premise of this murder mystery is good but unfortunately the execution lets it down.

Twelve people turn up at a dark house on a stormy night one by one, let in by a butler (who has tied up the real one!) We discover that these twelve people know each other, they were the jurors on a trial which apparently sent an innocent man to the gallows. They have been gathered together by Hale Hamilton to demonstrate how someone can be wrongly convicted on circumstantial evidence, a murder is staged but is everything actually fake?

The idea of this film is good but it can be a hard going watch at times. Most of the characters have less dimensions than a piece of string and the dialogue is pretty weak at times. However, this does have all the tropes of a Golden Age dark house mystery including hidden passages and female screams on cue! Not the worst film but it could have been a lot better.

Mr. Moto in Danger Island (1939)

A fun Mr Moto adventure where he unlocks a complicated crime plot with the help of a professional wrestler.

Mr Moto (Peter Lorre) heads to Puerto Rico to uncover a diamond smuggling gang, on the way he befriends a pro wrestler Twister (Warren Hymer) who ends up assisting Moto. 

Someone high up on the island is behind the diamond smuggling plot and tries to get rid of Moto even more he can begin his investigation. Moto disguises himself as a Japanese criminal in order to try and infiltrate the gang and uncover the mastermind...

A good crime B-move with the usual fast moving action, well structured plot and red herrings. Interestingly, this was originally to be a Charlie Chan film set in Trinidad but changed to become a Moto story after the death of Warner Oland.

The Silent Passenger (1935)

An enjoyable crime drama with some heavy use of the London North Eastern Railway.

Blackmailer Windermere (Leslie Perrins) is murdered by one of his enemies Camberley (Donald Wolfit) and stuffed into a trunk. Also looking for Windermere is Ryder (John Loder) who wants to stop his wife Mollie (Lilian Oldland) running off with Windermere! However, when he confronts "Windermere" whom he has never met he instead tangles with Camberley. 

Later on, the trunk and the body inside is discovered and Ryder is accused of murder, Camberley having framed him. Amateur detective Lord Peter Whimsey (Peter Haddon) is on hand to try and sort things out...

The film is mostly formulaic though has decent performances, including Haddon who plays Whimsey slightly irrelevantly. The final show down at a railway depot provides just enough peril to bring the film to a satisfying end.

The Fighting Gentleman (1932)

An enjoyable, if fairly predictable, sporting drama.

Jack (William Collier Jr) is a mechanic who is at the fair with his girlfriend Jeanette (Josephine Dunn) and wants to impress her / win some money. He has the bright idea of taking on the fair's prize fighter, yet despite his bravado he is knocked out by a single punch! 

Undaunted, Jack decides he will become a professional boxer (of course!) However, despite success in the ring, Jack's love life is thrown into chaos by the arrival of gold digger Natalie Moorhead...

A pleasant film which breezes on by, though the story itself is a bit generic as a boxing/sporting story. That does not mean it isn't worth watching.

Topper Takes a Trip (1938)

Light hearted supernatural antics.

Following on from the first Topper film, Topper (Roland Young) is now in the divorce court but the case is thrown out thanks to help from ghost Marion (Constance Bennett) and a clever dog (Asta the dog)! 

The troublesome Mrs Parkhurst (Verree Teasdale) takes Mrs Topper (Billie Burke) to France where she tries to arrange for a reason for a divorce, meanwhile ghost Marion also takes Topper to France to try and reconcile him with his wife so Marion can finally go to heaven...

We also see Cary Grant due to the re-use of some edited footage from the first film. This is a light fun film that is very nicely made. Topper appeared once more in Topper Returns in 1941.

Star Reporter (1939)

A fast moving crime/reporter B-movie, so fast moving that there is scarcely time to breathe.

Randolph (Warren Hull) is a young idealistic newspaper owner (and reporter) who is dedicated to the public good and fighting crime. To that aim he has supported the election of the new DA Burnette (Wallace Clarke), though he also wants to marry Burnette's daughter (Marsha Hunt). 

However, when the DA fails to prosecute the gangsters then Randolph turns against Burnette. The reason though is because the DA knows a terrible secret about Randolph's father...

This is a great film that packs in an incredible amount of story and drama into a pretty short running time. The film is exposition heavy to drive things along, though maybe a little too fast. To be honest i do prefer shorter films but this is one which could have probably done with an extra fifteen to twenty minutes! 

It is still highly enjoyable, indeed one of the better B-movies of the late 1930s.

The Speckled Band (1931)

An early Sherlock Holmes talkie.

Sherlock Holmes (Raymond Massey) helps a young heiress (Angela Badderley) after the death of her sister and growing menace from her brutal step-father Dr Rylott (Lyn Harding). One mystery is that the sister's last words were "speckled band"...

A good Sherlock Holmes adaptation which is only marred by the poor quality of production at times, especially the sound. Holmes and Watson (Athole Stewart) are very well portrayed here but also pretty different to the popular series of Holmes films starring Basil Rathbone which would come in a few years time.

The Ninth Guest (1934)

A confusing though fast paced mystery.

Eight guests are invited to dinner at a mysterious house by an unnamed host. The guests all have reason to hate one of the other members so things are a bit fractious. Then a voice from the radio tells them they will be murdered one by one unless they manage to outwit their host, the ninth guest. To underscore the threat they can't leave as he has had the gates connected to the mains, plus various other traps...

Naturally the other guests do not take to this well and start accusing each other of being this ninth guest. The story moves on from there as the guests die off in various ways. It does sound a bit Agatha Christie, though this film (and the original story) predates And Then There Were None / Ten Little Indians (1945) (1965) (1972) by a number of years...

Donald Cook and Genevieve Tobin star as two of the guests, who manage to work out their mutual antagonism as they help solve the mystery of who is the ninth guest. The story is a little complicated with a lot of red herrings (maybe a few too many) but an enjoyable watch.

Seven Keys to Baldpate (1935)

An enjoyable dark house crime romp, just expect many clichés.

Writer William Magee (Gene Raymond) is looking for a quiet place to work on his book and heads to a remote hotel which should be empty. Unfortunately, it is anything but! 

There are a number of other people lurking around the hotel including Mary (Margaret Callahan) but also others who seem to have dark intents and some missing money.

This is a fun film and played pretty light and fast moving, Magee seems pretty unruffled throughout despite tangling with various thugs and potential dangers. It is full of dark house clichés including hidden rooms and random events. 

Seven Sinners (1936)

A fast moving romp across Europe, including multiple train crashes!

Harwood (Edmund Lowe) is an American private detective in Europe, he discovers a dead body in his hotel room but by the time the authorities turn up the body is gone! 

Insurance agent Caryl Fenton (Constance Cummings) joins Harwood for a new job in Scotland but Harwood is more interested in finding out what happened to the corpse! Not long after Caryl and Harwood are involved in their first train crash, but not before Harwood is reunited with the corpse, on the train!

A highly entertaining, witty and fast moving film, the two leads trading quips nearly as fast as the plot. The plot though may have a few holes here and there but it doesn't linger on any one scene long enough for it to really matter. The twist at the end is good too when the mastermind behind the mayhem is finally revealed.

The Crusader (1932)

A slightly dull and awkward early talkie.

Philip Brandon (H.B. Warner) is a crusading District Attorney which naturally has gained him a number of enemies as he goes against the big criminals. One person he doesn't go after is law abiding bar owner Jimmie (Lew Cody). Unknown to Brandon though, is that his wife Tess (Evelyn Brent) was Jimmie's ex back when Jimmie was less law abiding.

Meanwhile, Brandon's sister Marcia (Marceline Day) is also involved with a less law-abiding associate of Jimmie, Joe (Walter Byron). When Marcia kills Joe in self-defence, who is going to take the rap...

The story is fine but the execution is flawed, hindered by some poor sound quality. Ned Sparks plays a typically cheeky chappie news reporter (as they always were in 1930s cinema) but it is often hard to hear his dialogue which ruins the effect somewhat. Not a bad pre-code film but it could have been a lot more.