El desquite del Lobo

Delia Jordan's father is murdered and some very valuable jewelry stolen. She hires Michael Lanyard (aka The Lone Wolf), a retired-and-reformed jewel thief to find the killer and the jewels.

The 2nd Lone Wolf entry starring Warren William is a tightly-plotted, engaging one with a clever run around over the stolen pearls. One minute there's a fake one exchanged for the real one etc - the Lone Wolf is always one step ahead, but he's bit hampered by the interference of Joan Perry who plays the daughter of the murdered man; she's a restless client who is practically on Warren's heels every minute, overly anxious to get back her father's gems. There's another beauty Astrid Allwyn an alluring moll, who along with her boyfriend are after the pearls and so are another group. Nice chase sequence at the end.

Michael Lanyard, aka The Lone Wolf is hired by Delia Jordan, who's father was killed, and had some highly valuable jewellery stolen.

It's perhaps not as good as the first film, but it's still a fine watch. It's a very easy going watch, it's fun, it's intriguing, and there's enough happening to keep you entertained, pacing is good, helped by a relatively short running time.

Warren William is great once again as the lead character, oozing charm and charisma, Joan Perry is great in support, Eric Blore is outrageous as The Butler, he's an absolute scream.

It's a very stylish looking film, even after so many years have past it still looks so slick, it's beautifully shot and produced.

I loved those quirky scenes with the fish, so different.

Nothing heavy, just a very pleasing, east to watch mystery.

7/10.

The Lone Wolf Strikes (1940)

*** (out of 4)

Fun entry in the series has a young woman (Joan Perry) have her father murdered and some expensive pearls stolen so Michael Lanyard (Warren William), aka The Lone Wolf, takes the case and uncovers several bad guys all wanting the jewels. This certainly isn't going to be mistaken for a classic but I think there's enough good stuff going on here to make it worth viewing to anyone who enjoys these older mystery series. As you'd expect, William is pitch-perfect in the lead because he has no trouble playing tough and a he certainly has no issue playing laid back, cool and he can deliver a one-liner when need be. All of those years working in various pre-codes for Warner really set William up good for a series like this because he can pretty much play anything. If a scene needs charm then he can deliver. If he needs to be tough then he can deliver that. William is certainly the main reason to watch the film as he keeps it moving at a very fast pace. The supporting cast includes a nice bit by Joan Perry as the rather obnoxious daughter who can't stay out of trouble and we also get Eric Blore playing the butler. The story itself is a pretty strong one as we're given a couple mysterious to be solved. The film starts going down one track but quickly changes as a second mystery comes up. At 67-minutes the film moves at a very fast pace and keeps the viewer guessing along the way.

"The Lone Wolf Strikes" from 1940 is a neat entry into the Lone Wolf series starring Warren William. William is delightful as Michael Lanyard, aka The Lone Wolf. His butler is played by Eric Blore, who has a large part in this and is very funny. In this story, Lanyard is asked by a friend to find pearls that were stolen from a friend of his, who was subsequently murdered - though the murder was called an accident.

Fake pearls and real pearls bounce back and forth, with William going to a gathering as Emil Gorlick, a diamond merchant. Gorlick is actually played by Montagu Love, but when William finds out that he has never met the thieves, he ties Gorlick up and impersonates him in order to re-steal the pearls.

Warren William was a wonderful, relaxed actor, an old-fashioned patrician type, who found humor in roles once the silents ended. In silents, he usually played the heavy. He played Perry Mason, Sam Spade, and Philo Vance, among other parts. He continued to play the occasional heavy, but he's best known for his precode work as a meanie. He died in 1948, only 53.

Very enjoyable.

Delightful entry in the Lone Wolf series starring WARREN WILLIAMS, this time with JOAN PERRY as the young woman seeking to find the killers who murdered her wealthy father. With a larger than usual role for valet ERIC BLORE, who makes the most of his comic abilities, this one gets off to a merry start and provides a good mix of laughs and shady bits of suspense.

The cast is in fine form--especially when MONTAGU LOVE turns up as a European diamond merchant with thick accent, bushy mustache and monocle. The story is all about the theft of a pearl necklace from the safe of Philip Jordan (Perry's father) and his murder. The Lone Wolf takes the case when the daughter pleads with him and from then on it's standard Lone Wolf fare with the plot leading to a satisfying capture of the killer thieves.

Summing up: Delightful entry in the series.

Trivia note: For awhile, I thought the actor playing Ralph Bolton was Craig Stevens, but it turns out it was RALPH WILCOX who was married, first to Florence Rice, and then to Diana Barrymore--who dedicated her book "Too Much, Too Soon" to Wilcox, with whom she went on alcoholic binges during their five year marriage. Very handsome actor who never made it to stardom in Hollywood, probably due to alcoholism.