Super-Sleuth

In "Super-Sleuth", Jack Oakie plays an actor who plays movie detectives and is a fat-head and numb-skull. He thinks he's smarter than the police and he inexplicably insists on solving the Poison Pen murders all by himself--even though he's one of the killer's intended victims. Along the way, Oakie mugs and overacts in the way that folks loved back in the day--mostly because he didn't seem to take himself very seriously. Despite knowing NOTHING about solving crimes and mostly making a nuisance of himself through most of the film, he ends up stumbling into the solution--all by dumb luck (it sure ain't intelligence!).

The solution to the crime is incredibly easy. So why did it take everyone to finally figure out that the creepy guy (Eduardo Cianelli) was behind it all?! Also, the scene with the gun near the end of the film is pretty stupid--and NO actor is that stupid and the f wax works section is pretty dumb!! Still, the film is amiable if not particularly surprising. Oakie's style is pleasant and the film modestly entertaining.

Great chance for moon-faced comedian Jack Oakie to mug it up for an hour or so. He's a movie detective at a Hollywood studio in what's obviously a spoof of movie sleuths so popular at the time. Never mind that his Willard Martin is a 30-watt bulb in a 60-watt world. Martin has convinced himself he's the greatest actor since Barrymore, so it's fun to watch him bumble along head held high even as his rear-end sags. Still, Oakie manages the egotistical character without making him obnoxious.

It's a slender exercise that has someone trying to kill Martin because they didn't like his last movie— what inspired motivation! Still, the screenplay should have made a mystery of the public-spirited culprit instead of tipping us off so early. That would have added an extra element of comical suspense. Anyway, the lovely Ann Sothern is a studio flack who has her hands full keeping the bumbler out of trouble, while trying to stay away from Prof. Herman's house of horrors. Maybe the best parts are the behind-the-scenes look at movie-making on a sound stage and on location. Paul Guilfoyle breaks from his usual wacky characters to play the no-nonsense movie director, of all things. The wind-up is a whirlwind slapstick through the professor's museum, making this a lively if slender glimpse of the bottom-of-the-bill, 1930's style.

I usually find movies of this era poorly written, over-acted, and the comedies not funny. This one is funny thanks to Jack Oakie. Ann Southern and the other actors did over-act, see.

The minor "Super-Sleuth" is a cartoon-like, live action film, but with plenty of relaxed, pleasant, and gentle comedic moments. Jack Oakie plays a likeable, almost endearing character, even though he thinks excessively highly of himself. Jack's timing is superb, providing for the viewer a film full of subtle, chuckle-inducing lines, body language, and facial reactions to circumstances he doesn't fully appreciate.

The supporting cast seems to have plenty of fun doing their part to make the film work-- that is except for Ann Southern, who, unfortunately, has little to do in the program other than just kind of be there for Jack. The inside view of making movies in 1937 on set and on location is a bonus. If you go in for viewing not expecting a Cary Grant- or Katherine Hepburn-kind of major league comedy you will enjoy this picture just fine. As a 1930's movie fan I am very glad to have finally seen it!

Jack Oakie stars as movie star Willard Martin and Ann Sothern plays girlfriend Mary Strand, who happens to be Willard's PR rep. Willard is played like a cartoon character, and the film is humorous and hokey, light-weight comedic fare.

The basic conceit is that Willard, who plays a formidable crime solver in the movies, confuses his role with reality. He gets into a war of words with local police authorities over a recent crime, thinking he can do everything better than they. Meanwhile, a strange little man starts sending death threats to Willard.

Mary works overtime to save Willard from his oversized ego, trying to simultaneously keep her job and keep him safe.

The two stars are a joy to watch. When Oakie mugs for the camera, it fits the cartoonish theme of the film. And it feels like a parody of other film heroes, especially those who appear in the episodic cliffhangers of the day.