Murder in the Clouds (1934)

High flying criminal catching antics.

Three Star (not his real name), played by Lyle Talbot, is a hot shot pilot for a small airline who likes showing off his flying skills with acrobatics a little too much for the boss' liking. However, he is chosen to fly a very special cargo - a top secret new explosive - to Washington but just before the flight he is beaten up by some mysterious thugs. 

Thus instead the brother (Robert Light) of his girlfriend Judy (Ann Dvorak) takes the flight, which ends in an explosion! Judy heads out to see what really went on, with Three Star close behind...

This is a really good film with some excellent aerial scenes. The plot is simple but well worked out and the bad guys suitably menacing, deadly and scheming. The hero Three Star is, as so often with films of this period, equal parts heroic and annoying.

Criminal Court (1946)

A man tries to admit to a crime he did commit, and no one believes him!

Steve (Tom Conway) is a hot shot lawyer on the rise, though he is concerned that his girlfriend Georgia (Martha O'Driscoll) has taken a job working as a singer at a club owned by Vic Wright (Robert Armstrong), whom Steve is aiming to bring down due to his corrupt dealings with city officials! 

During a fight, Steve accidentally kills Vic but Georgia gets the blame despite Steve's admissions of guilt, the evidence seems to be all against Georgia. Can Steve save her in court?

A good crime film with some fine courtroom scenes (though Steve's antics are a bit over the top at times). A typical well-packed B movie with a lot to enjoy.

The Hostage Tower (1980)

A daring, if somewhat ridiculous, plot to hold the Eiffel Tower hostage!

Master criminal Mr Smith (Keir Dullea) has an audacious new crime planned, he will take the Eiffel Tower hostage! He recruits a number of top criminals to help him, unfortunately for him though two are agents from Philpott's (Douglas Fairbanks Jr) special crime fighting unit. These are Clarence (Billy Dee Williams) and Sabrina (Maud Carver), though Sabrina is shocked that Mike (Peter Fonda) has also been recruited and he was her instructor in the CIA...

The plot goes off, and an added complication is that Mr Smith has got hold of some deadly laser weapons, and the mother of the US President (Celia Johnson) is also a hostage...

A solid action TV movie (though the premise itself is a little ridiculous). The scenes on the Eiffel Tower are very well filmed, and the laser cannons are pretty cool. Well, lasers are always cool.

The Marseille Contract (1974)

A stellar cast, a good plot but somehow a bit of a disappointment.

US agent Ventura (Anthony Quinn) has been trying to bring drug baron Brizard (James Mason) down for ages but to no avail, so he decides to employ a contract killer. 

To his surprise the assassin turns out to be an old friend, Deray (Michael Caine). Deray is sent down to Marseille to get involved with Brizard's organisation, meanwhile Ventura is starting to have second thoughts...

A decent enough early 1970s crime movie though with the three leads you might expect a little more, maybe we are just being a bit greedy? This is still an enjoyable film, gritty and violent at times and also with some good sports car action. 

Matt Houston (1982)

The feature length pilot for walking stereotype Matt Houston, the rich Texan oil executive who is also a private investigator!

A business man is killed during the launch of an ocean liner, when the champagne bottle explodes! Matt Houston (Lee Horsley) begins to investigate the case, and of course there are many suspects including the daughter Serena (Barbara Carrera) and the mistress Karen Ann (Jill St John). As well as a case which frequently puts him in danger, Matt is also training on a bucking bronco so he can win a bet and tame a wild horse! Matt is assisted by CJ (Pamela Hensley) and his police friend Vince (John Aprea).

This is all very odd stuff which probably only made sense in the early 1980s. Matt is very genial though and charismatic, this helps with the watchability even if the story and premise is a bit strange. A mixture of cowboy and secret agent. It shouldn't really work but somehow did. After this pilot Matt Houston ran for three seasons.

Air Patrol (1962)

A decent but straight forward crime procedural, the only novelty being the helicopters, though that is a good one!

An expensive painting is stolen, the thief escaping from the top of an office block via a helicopter! The police are baffled, so call upon Sgt Castle (Robert Dix) from the police helicopter squad for help. However, the culprit isn't tracked down before a ransom demand is made which the painting's owner agrees to, his secretary Mona (Merry Anders) is sent to deliver the cash while Castle shadows her in his helicopter. One of the least exciting police car chases in screen history follows.

This can't be said to be a very exciting film but it is very watchable. The lack of much in the way of action actually gives the film a genuine feel and the police procedural work is very solid even if the car chase seems rather inept. The film does feel like it should have been the pilot of a TV series, though Castle says he wanted to leave the helicopter squad anyway!

Special Delivery (1976)

An enjoyable heist movie with a difference, the actual heist just setting things up.

Murdock (Bo Swenson) leads a daring bank robbery, though when the robbers try to get away things start to go wrong. Only Murdock manages to get away after he stuffs half a million dollars in cash in a post box. Now he has to find out a way to get the cash out of the post box before it is collected. 

Unfortunately, a couple of people noticed what he did. One is a petty drug pusher (Michael C Gwynne) and the other a young woman Mary (Cybill Shepherd) who wants to get him into bed... and get her hands on the cash.

Although the premise is a little silly at times this is a solid film with a good relationship between Murdock and Mary. The action scenes which book end the film (the first being the robbery and chase) are both very well done.

Thief (1971)

An intelligent and enjoyable TV movie with a rather shocking ending.

Neal (Richard Crenna) is an amiable soul, keeping himself in shape, trying to get custody of his kid and building a new relationship with Jean (Angie Dickinson). 

However, he has a bit of a dark secret: he is a burglar! He has tried to go straight but his gambling addiction means he now owes money to the mob, much to to the despair of his friend and lawyer Charles (Cameron Mitchell). In order to meet his debts, Neal has to do one more big job, and this one could be his most risky one yet...

A very good story that makes a sympathetic character out of someone who would usually be a villain. The actual robberies we see are very tense, you are drawn in and feel worried for Neal when he is so close to being caught in the act! The ending though will surprise you, but maybe not in a good way.

Calling Philo Vance (1939)

Philo Vance is called upon to deal with a case of Fifth Columnists and stolen aeroplane plans.

A plane designer is murdered, the question is: have his secret aeroplane plans also been stolen? Philo Vance (James Stephenson) is called upon to investigate. Now, the murder took place in a locked room (so this has both a Golden Age style locked room mystery and an espionage plot!) Of course there are a lot of potential suspects, and the various Axis powers are involved...

Although this is largely a remake of the earlier Philo Vance film the Kennel Murder Case, it has been nicely updated to reflect the geopolitical situation of the time. However, the film - although still perfectly good - is not quite as good as the original which was one of the best Philo Vance movies. The locked room mystery is a good one and nicely worked out.

Island of Doomed Men (1940)

A superbly dark tale which allowed Peter Lorre to run riot.

Mark Sheldon (Robert Wilcox) is tasked by the secret service to investigate the mysterious Danel (Lorre) who has his own island, and who accepts paroled men to work for him there. However, it is rumoured these men are horribly treated, treated as slaves and tortured. Sheldon is arrested after an unknown assailant kills a fellow agent, Sheldon allows himself to be arrested for murder and sentenced! Some time later he is paroled and is sent to Danel's island.

Sheldon finds a brutal regime of slave labour, with public floggings a regular occurrence. Danel is also treating his wife (Rochelle Hudson) as a prisoner. She soon has the hots for Sheldon...

An enjoyable romp. Peter Lorre plays Danel with relish, not so much chewing the scenery but having it on toast. The story itself is a little heavy in the whippings and violence but Lorre makes it very entertaining.

The Bishop Murder Case (1929)

An early talkie and one of the earliest Philo Vance films, in this film he is played by Basil Rathbone.

After a young man is found dead with an arrow in him, the police and Philo Vance are called in. Vance quickly sees that the arrow scene was staged, really the man was bludgeoned to death. The young man was found dead at the home of Professor Dillard (Alec B Francis), with a number of mysterious acting neighbours and relatives. A note by someone who calls themselves The Bishop is found alluding to the murder...

An interesting entry in the Philo Vance series, Rathbone plays the part well. Though it is amusing, in hindsight, that he gets accused of being Sherlock Holmes as he played the role many times just a few years later! The film suffers a little from being a bit static, as with many early talkies but it does not ruin the film too much. Some good character actors play the various suspects and there are the required number of red herrings and mysterious clues.

Behind Green Lights (1946)

An enjoyable detective drama which injects a dose of whimsy as well as Noir.

After a businessman involved in local politics is dumped outside the police headquarters, Lieutenant Sam Carson (William Gargan) is bought in to investigate. To make things complicated it looks like the daughter (Carole Landis) of a man heavily involved in local politics could be involved. Newspaper proprietor Calvert (Roy Roberts) who is a political rival is keen to push this angle...

This is a fine crime B-movie with plenty of potential suspects and red herrings. What helps the film stand out is some of the oddness which has been added, including a deranged character who ends up being rather key to the plot. The political shenanigans and corruption add another layer to the already good story.

Enemy Agents Meet Ellery Queen (1942)

Ellery Queen returns to combat a Nazi gang after diamonds.

Free Dutch agents have smuggled diamonds into the US to keep them away from the Nazis... though a Nazi gang is hot on their heels. Ellery Queen (William Gargan) and Nikki Porter (Margaret Lindsay) are dragged into the case, at first thinking the Dutch agent Gillette (Gilbert Roland) is a criminal but soon they discover the truth. The case is a complicated one with some unexpected twists.

This was the final entry in the Ellery Queen series and the series ends on a high. A lot is packed into the war time plot and it ends with some good rough humour in the final fight scene. Of course, there is a bit of a propaganda edge to the film though this doesn't overbear the story.

The Greene Murder Case (1929)

An early Philo Vance talkie.

The Greene family are that staple of interwar American families on screen: rich and hate each other! They live in the family ancestral pile and must live there for fifteen years otherwise they won't get a share of the late Mr Greene's wealth. 

After two of the family are killed within a few minutes of each other, Philo Vance (William Powell) is called in by the baffled police (Eugene Palette) to help, but even he is confused by the various possible suspects, though it helps that the possible suspects are being whittled down by being murdered too! 

A good film. Technically interesting especially with some of the camera angles in the final act and the peril on the roof. The story is good with some interesting psychological aspects to it. Although an early talkie the sound recording and acting isn't too bad.

The Thirteenth Chair (1937)

A detective story set in the "mysterious" East and involving seances, could a film be any more from the 1930s?

After the murder of a man in Calcutta, Inspector Marney (Lewis Stone) is bought in to investigate this baffling case. "Help" comes from an unexpected direction as Madame La Grange (May Whitty) to performance a seance with a group of people linked to the victim, one of whom is probably the murderer. 

However, during the seance another man is murdered! Marney investigates the case, this time he is sure the murderer is in the room, and a number of secrets are revealed...

This is a highly enjoyable crime film with tasty additions of Eastern mystery and mysticism. Not as witty or intelligent as an Agatha Christie type of story but not bad at all. The crime itself and how it is solved is a lot more down to earth though. Some great twists and a good character mix make this a pretty good film.

Cash on Demand (1961)

A taut, tense and excellent bank robbery drama.

Bank manager Fordyce (Peter Cushing) is unpopular with his staff, he pounces on mistakes and disapproves of the preparations for Christmas. 

Then he is visited by genial and refined Colonel Gore (André Morell) who is from an insurance company he claims, however soon Fordyce discovers that Gore is really a bank robber who has had Fordyce's family taken hostage and will have them electrocuted if Fordyce does not give Gore access to the safe and let him steal nearly £100,000 in cash!

This is a very good bank robbery film that keeps everything within a handful of locations. The interplay between Cushing and Morell is superb, maybe one of Peter Cushing's best roles. Morell also excels as the crook hiding a huge amount of menace behind his genteel facade.

The Silent Witness (1932)

Melodramatic at times but this is a pretty solid crime and court room drama.

Naive young fool Anthony (Bramwell Fletcher) is wrapped around the finger of his manipulative lover Nora (Greta Nissen) and her scheming husband Blake (Weldon Heyburn). Finally, he snaps and he thinks he has killed Nora. His father Sir Austin (Lionel Atwill) decides to take the blame to save his son from the gallows. In the court room the case against him begins to unravel putting Anthony back in peril... but did he kill Nora after all?

Anthony is an incredibly annoying character who drags the film down at times but when he is kept away from the story then things develop nicely into a very solid crime story and some good court room scenes with some good British humour and characters. The story is very good and Greta Nissen steals the film with her sexy performance. An excellent film.

The Doomsday Flight (1966)

One of the best TV movies ever made, an excellent tale of high drama at high altitude.

A flight takes off bound for New York, the usual collection of stereotypes is aboard including the arrogant celebrity Ducette (John Saxon). 

However, the flight captained by Anderson (Van Johnson) soon runs into trouble as a mysterious man (Edmond O'Brien) rings the airline to tell them there is a bomb aboard! The bomb is air pressure sensitive, so will explode if the plane drops below a certain altitude. With time running out, FBI Agent Thomson (Jack Lord) battles to try and catch the bomber, though the bomber is getting drunk and throwing everything into chaos...

This is a truly excellent film with a lot of tension and plot twists and turns. Great performances and a well paced and staged plot make this film very highly recommended.

The Swiss Conspiracy (1976)

A superb crime drama, though it does seem intent in shoehorning every Swiss cliché into it that is possible.

Swiss banks are famous for their secrecy and discretion, however someone is putting that at risk by black mailing the customers of the bank operated by Hurtil (Ray Milland). 

Former US agent Christopher (David Janssen) is bought in to investigate, but soon tangles with mobster Hayes (John Saxon) and the rather more lovely Abbott (Senta Berger). There is an insider behind this conspiracy, the identity of which is quite a surprise...

A very good film, though leans rather more heavily on the "Swiss-ness" of the setting than maybe it should. At times it does risk becoming self-parody but luckily the strong plot and good performances save the day and make this a very worthwhile film indeed.

Dick Tracy vs. Crime, Inc. (Serial) (1941)

Everything is thrown at this Dick Tracy serial, which is wonderfully over the top.

A deadly crime boss known as The Ghost has the ability to become invisible. He uses this skill for crime of course. When he wants to deal with his underlings he wears a rather creepy black mask which looks pretty cool. 

Only Dick Tracy (Ralph Byrd) can stop him (and reveal which of the potential suspects he is) after many cliff hangers and death defying stunts... 

This is pretty good stuff and one of the better movie serials of the 1940s. Nothing is spared and the actions is fast and frequently ridiculous. It is a comic strip bought to life on screen which is exactly how Dick Tracy should be of course.