Private Scandal

There is some mystery in this film, which keeps one somewhat interested. I think the comedy is supposed to be in the brash comments by Ned Sparks as Inspector Riordan. That type of humor may have had a slight following in its day, but clearly not much or there surely would have been many more films made with it. But, just as much in holding one's interest as the mystery, is the absolute dumbness of the cast overall. That is, in the roles being played. I can't think of any crime or mystery story I've ever read or seen in a movie, in which so many people lied outright, with little thought, to the police investigator. And, for no apparent reason. It almost seemed toward the end as though the film was intended as a mockery of the law and crime stories. But it wasn't quite clever enough to be satire.

Well, "Private Scandal" is a murder mystery that gets solved in the end. But, after a few minutes of the opening scenes to set the stage, the film soon became little more than a series of short encounters of Riordan with the various other members of the cast. There seemed no end to little discoveries so that it gradually becomes clear that Cliff Barry wasn't the only person who knew anything abut B. J. Somers' demise. And, Barry was also the biggest and multiple liar of the bunch. Sure, Phillips Holmes played the character as jittery, nervous and discombobulated. But his decisions and actions from the start showed a person who was more stupid than reasonable. Imagine anyone not knowing that the police would be able to determine that Somers had died the night before, not that morning.

There was too much of this type of kindergarten thinking and behavior in this script. Imagine that so many employees would say they thought they had seen a mysterious man who was with Somers that morning. Remember that Inspector Riordan questioned them individually. Yet they all fabricated such a lie. And what about the disconnect from the night before when Simons and his love are surprised and the screen goes blank? Strictly kindergarten story-telling.

Judging from the plot, screenplay and various cast members, I would guess this was a movie done by the B unit at Paramount. Zasu Pitts would have a very long career in films with many, many to her credit, bukt no memorable roles. Most of the rest of the cast, except for Sparks, were hardly known much beyond the time of this film.

...but only one ultimately requires the attention of the police.

Benjamin Somers (Lew Cody) is building a housing development entitled "Eden Gardens". He is asking for more money from the investors, but they are confronting him asking him what he has done with the money they already gave him. Plus the investors have hired a very unpleasant person to investigate where the money is. Somers stalls them off for a day, so he can ask an old friend of his to front him some more money. The truth is, and what he admits to one of his employees and the fiancé of his daughter (Phillips Holmes as Cliff), is that he gambled that money on the stock market and lost it all. Somers is not only worried about his good name, he actually is worried that all of the investors will be without anything if he doesn't get the money back. He mentions to Cliff that his life insurance policies are enough to pay everybody back, but doesn't mention the suicide plot he is hatching.

That night, Cliff and Somers' daughter Fran (Mary Brian) are out on the town. Cliff decides to call Somers at the office, only to have Somers tell him he is about to kill himself because his old friend and last hope refuses to help him with more cash, and that Cliff needs to come over and hide the gun after he is dead so that the life insurance policies will pay off and the investors will have their money back. Horrified at this information, Cliff drives to the scene hoping to stop the suicide, but it is too late. Somers is slumped at his office, dead from a gunshot wound to the head. In fact, Cliff hears the shot from his car. So Cliff does only what he can do at this point. He hides the gun in his own office, so it will look like a murder took place, and the life insurance will pay off. Plus he wants to hide the fact that Somers was an embezzler and a suicide from Somers' daughter, Fran. You have to wonder, what WOULD have Somers done if Cliff hadn't have called him? Was he planning to call somebody else to hide the gun? But I digress.

It's a good thing Cliff is honest, because he is the worst criminal accomplice in the history of the world. As he leaves he is seen by the night watchman, and tells him that Somers has left. The next morning, Somers' secretary sees the "IN CONFERENCE" light on in Somers' office (his dead finger is on the button) and wants to go in and ask Somers something. Cliff stops her, and tells her Somers came in early and is talking to somebody important. He tells several other people in the office that he saw Somers either leaving or entering his office. And then there is that pesky weapon in his office. In short, he is getting caught in a web of lies that are easily contradicted by his dead boss' body.

The police do show up, after the office personnel discover the body, and Ned Sparks is the detective in charge. The thing is, he is acting like Ned Sparks did in every other film he's ever been in - rude, with a personality dipped in vinegar, pushing everybody around, and acting like everybody is going to jail. And you can't help but notice that the whole office is acting very guilty about SOMETHING. It turns out they all have something to hide, just not necessarily having anything to do with the dead body of their old boss.

How will this all work out? Watch and find out. It is a very good mystery with a great ensemble cast and there is actually even more to Somers' death than I am telling you here, but I want you to do some head scratching of your own. Highly recommended.