The Devil Plays

Writer Jameson Thomas comes into the room to find people standing over a body, discussing who had killed the victim. When he demands to know why they haven't called the police, the corpse stands up. They've being going over a scene in his latest murder novel.

Later, when a corpse does show up, they call the police. When Inspector Thomas Jackson appears in charge of a group of policemen, they don't discuss, they ask questions of the people and give nothing back. As they grow frustrated by all the witnesses who saw nothing and know nothing, Thomas begins to work the situation over in his mind.... and makes some suggestions to the rather contemptuous professionals.

Richard Thorpe certainly knew how to get a good movie out of a decent script and skilled players. It led him from Poverty Row oaters to directing epics for MGM, with some camera tricks to keep costs down. In this one, it's never quite clear when characters are performing, and when they're saying what they are actually thinking. If it seems slow at times, because Thorpe won't cut entrances to get to the meat of the scene I felt my usual impatience with the turgid pacing of Poverty Row shows... or was it a sense that opportunity was slipping away while characters thought? A little of both, I think.

The flick's a pre-Code detective story. Pretty clearly it's meant as nothing more than a 60-minute programmer, with a no-name cast, an indoor narrative, and a script that generates little suspense. It's a series of murders in a mansion with several high-class couples as suspects. However, the whodunnit never really ignites since the bland uninteresting characters come and go in haphazard fashion. The only spark is the comedy relief cop (Kelly) whose eye-rolling and Karloff-like mug attract some interest. I kept hoping the filming would go outdoors so maybe we could see some of those gas belching tin flivvers from that era. No such luck. But do catch the ladies' many cloche hats so popular during the fashionable 20's. At the same time, there's no real evidence of that uncensored pre-Code period, though the ladies do model some eye-catching apparel. Anyway, I gather the movie was lost for many years, but has since been found. It may not be a big boon for entertainment, but does catch the flavor of its time. So, here's to historical, if not artistic, completeness.

A pretty dreadful low-budget murder-mystery which pays little attention to defining its characters. There's a lot of talk, but very little action.

Some movies aren't worth watching. This is one. There are too many vacuous characters and an insipid plot. The lines are delivered with a full second between speeches, as if they were waiting for the audience to absorb the silly dialogue. There is some humor and that's about all that makes it even slightly worthwhile. Don't bother.

I am writing this review as a counterpoint to the other review. Although I agree with all that was written, it completely misses the point of why this movie is enjoyable. It is the chance to see several veteran players of the silent cinema playing without the restraint of being just bit actors and dress extras, which was their more frequent fate. Sure the material is junk and they would much rather have been working as stars at Metro or Paramount. But the reality was that this was their life, it was a living, and they kept soldiering on. Here is betting that they all had a good laugh after each scene and appreciated that in 1931 any job was a good job.