The Case of the Curious Bride

Second in the Perry Mason film series starring Warren William as the famed lawyer/detective. It's arguably the best in the series. This time around Perry is asked for help by an old flame and winds up investigating her estranged husband's murder. Fun entry with a weird thread involving Perry's cooking hobby. William is having fun as he usually seemed to be. Allen Jenkins is a hoot as Perry's sidekick. Claire Dodd is an enjoyable Della Street. Errol Flynn has a "blink and you'll miss him" appearance in a flashback. This was his inauspicious feature film debut. One of Humphrey Bogart's wives, Mayo Methot, has a small part. The rest of the fine cast includes the always lovely Margaret Lindsay, the always bland Donald Woods, and the always grumpy Barton MacLane. It's a good-looking film, attractively photographed by David Abel with nice direction from the great Michael Curtiz, who would go on to much bigger and better films, including many starring Flynn.

There are a lot of different film genres I enjoy, but one I've enjoyed as long as I can remember (at least 45 years) is 30s/40s-era detective/murder mysteries. For reasons I can't explain, the early Perry Mason movies have, until the other night, remained unknown to me. I love the Thin Man, Falcon, and the Saint - Perry Mason ticks all the same boxes. Mix a decent little murder mystery with a bit of nice comedy, snappy dialogue, an appealing cast, and a well-shot, nice looking film and you'll end up with film that will most likely work on me. The Case of the Curious Bride may not be the best of the bunch, but it is a whole lot of fun.

The plot involves a worried woman named Rhoda. She tracks down Perry with a story of "friend" who has recently remarried, but is worried her first husband may not be dead after all. What should the "friend" do? It doesn't take a detective to see that Rhoda's in trouble. Perry agrees to help, but before he can do much, Rhoda's first husband turns up dead - for real this time. With Rhoda the chief suspect and Perry's reputation on the line, he's got to find the real killer.

The Case of the Curious Bride has a couple things going for it. First, Warren William's Perry Mason is a joy to watch. Similar to Nick Charles, Mason is a worldly sort - capable of everything from cooking a gourmet meal to solving a murder to just about everything in between. And he does all with style and grace. His barbs, directed at the police or whoever gets in his way, and his overall wit are real treat. He's quite a character.

The second is Director Michael Curtiz. His direction, even in a relatively "small" picture like The Case of the Curious Bride, is spot-on. The direction is snappy, without a single wasted scene. Curtiz deftly gives the film a light, airy feel that works. The mix of comedy, mystery, and action is handled expertly. He was a real underrated professional.

Overall, a real treat that I easily rate a 7/10.

... since the premise of the crime does not make sense, and the behavior of both Perry (William) and the DA are outright illegal and unethical. (Sometimes one is not necessarily the other).

Rhoda Montagne (Margaret Lindsay), recently married to the wealthy Carl Montagne (Donald Woods), is allegedly "curious" if a particular person is alive. Except she isn't curious when she calls Perry and does the obvious old "a friend of mine wants to know" routine. Her allegedly dead husband has returned from the grave and has been bothering her for lots of money or he threatens the scandal of bigamy. Now this guy's racket makes no sense. He marries women, fakes his own death, and waits for them to marry rich men and then pulls the bigamy routine? How does he know, during the Great Depression, that any of them will marry a rich guy? This is a scam that might never pay off.

Well Rhoda's not dead husband turns up dead again - this time for real - stabbed in his apartment. Rhoda is arrested for the crime. But even her arrest is full of hijinks. Perry first hides the suspect then turns her over to be "arrested by the press", who then don't have to turn her over until they finish their interview? The police and DA work to hide Rhoda from her attorney, Perry, in spite of a habeas corpus order UNTIL they get a confession. Law & Order prosecutor Jack McCoy would shake his head and knock all of their heads together Three Stooges style.

And yet it works. Because the mystery of who actually did do it is a pretty good yarn. Because Warren William as the always suave never mussed never plussed attorney moves gracefully through his paces. Because Allan Jenkins as Perry's ever loyal muscle is a not very bright yet humorous delight. And because of the coroner who loves his work - "I'll be seeing you" - is always his greeting to everybody.

A couple of surprises - Margaret Lindsay and Donald Woods were paired several times because they had some chemistry together. But this time the wooden Donald Woods uses his stiffness to surprise you with the outcome. Also, speaking of stiffs, Errol Flynn is mute in a bit part as the murdered man. Did director Michael Curtiz, who directed Flynn in a total of twelve films, look under the sheet and say "kid, you've got something"?.

Michael Curtiz, one of the most prolific directors Hollywood had, is at the helm of this film, based on one of Erle Stanely Garner's stories, featuring Perry Mason, the famous lawyer. With a screen play by Tom Reed, this film offers a glance at some of the best players working in films in the Hollywood of the thirties.

Warren William, is Perry Mason, a man who knows a lot about the law, as well as what to cook for dinner. Mr. William is at his best playing the lawyer-detective. Margaret Lindsay, is the lady at the center of the crime that Perry Mason is trying to solve. Ms. Lindsay was a beautiful actress who adds a touch of class, as well as mystery to her take on Rhoda Montaine.

The rest of the cast assembled to back the principals was made up of some of the best character actors of the era. Donald Woods is seen as Carl Montaine. Clarie Dodd plays Perry's secretary Della Street. Allan Jenkins is Perry's assistant Spudsy.

A little gem of a film for lovers of the genre.

Margaret Lindsay approaches Warren William to ask him a question for a friend. It's always for a friend, isn't it? She's about to be married and wants to make sure her first husband is dead. While William goes in search of a bottle of Chablis '21, Miss Lindsay disappears. When the coffin of her first husband is opened, it contains a wooden Indian.

The second Perry Mason movie has him in San Francisco, still a sharp, urbane, sophisticated man, and a bit of a shyster when it comes to defending his clients. It's a nicely tangled little mystery under the direction of Michael Curtiz, with the snap and crackling pace that had become a standard for Warners programmers during the pre-code era, and which had not quite vanished.