Grand Central Murder

When a not so sympathetic victim (Patricia Dane) is murdered in a private side car at Grand Central Station, detective Van Heflin and a crusty inspector (Sam Levene) join forces to solve the case. A neat little mystery yarn, this was an above average B-picture from MGM that gave us an early glimpse of Van Heflin, a young actor who was certainly blessed with enormous talent. Virginia Grey, Stephen McNally, Samuel S. Hinds, Connie Gilchrist, Tom Conway and Millard Mitchell are fine in supporting roles and the ending comes as a satisfying, if not probable, conclusion.

This is the sort of film that played the lower half of a double bill when released in 1942, but even then it was praised as an above average thriller. It moves at a swift pace and is guaranteed to hold your interest.

Although this movie stars Van Heflin, you'd almost swear that it's a series detective film. If the names were only changed, I could imagine that this could have been a decent plot for Boston Blackie, the Lone Wolf or the Saint. That's because although the story is told through a series of flashbacks, in most other ways it is identical to a series film. It features the usual daffy lead police detective, his dumber than a tomato assistant, great snappy dialog, accusations that the private eye himself committed the murder, a sidekick for this guy and more twists and turns than any crime film deserves to have! For lovers of the genre, this film is a must-see---especially since Heflin's performance is so good and apparently effortless. While the movie occasionally bogs down a tad here and there (it is a bit too "talky"), it is generally quite interesting and the film's conclusion is truly horrific yet exciting to watch. Good stuff well worth your time.

Not a bad murder mystery with an interesting slant, gathering the usual suspects together in one place to flush out the guilty one takes place at the beginning of the film rather than at the end as would normally be the case. This enables the story to unfold in flashback fashion as told by each of the suspects. Van Heflin shines in one of his early roles. He seems a bit brash in places but otherwise is excellent. Patricia Dane in one of her few cinema appearances does well as the nasty gold digger who is murdered. Sam Levene made good money playing the dumb police inspector in several films of the period including two Thin Man's. So he knew his part by heart. And it's good to see veteran actor Millard Mitchell in one of his early roles.

When I first watched "Grand Central Murder," I reasoned it was taken from a play because that is how it runs. There are a few action scenes involving trains, especially at the end, but otherwise it could all have taken place on stage. This makes the movie very talkative and is a major weakness. I was surprised to see that the screenplay was adapted from a novel by Sue MacVeigh. So director S. Sylvan Simon must be to blame. The script is well-written with many witty lines. Not a bad way to spend 73 minutes.

It was great viewing this 1942 film that was suppose to take place in Grand Central Station, New York City, but 95 percent of the film was produced in Hollywood. Van Heflin, (Rocky Custer) plays the role as a private detective along with his wife, Virginia Grey, (Sue "Butch" Custer) who works side by side with her husband in order to solve many of his murder cases and investigations. Patricia Done (Mida King) plays the role of a gold digger who will flirt with any man old or young in order to get all their money or gifts and turn it all into cash and hid the money, because she did not believe in banks. Mida King made many friends, but also made many men grow to hate her. One man that was not very happy with Mida was Frankie Ciro, (Tom Conway) who owned a night club and made her his star and she walks out on opening night during the second act. Inspector Gunther,(Sam Levene) gives a great supporting role as the policeman in charge of the investigation and has a great deal of trouble trying to find out just who the killer is and even accuses Rocky Custer and many other people in the cast.

Van Heflin brings flair to "Grand Central Murder," a 1942 B movie from MGM about a golddigging musical comedy star (Patricia Dane) who winds up dead in the private car of a train.

The suspects include a escaped prisoner named Turk, (Stephen McNally, here billed as Horace McNally) and an on and off boyfriend played by Tom Conway, etc.

Heflin plays Rocky, a detective who was hired to get evidence so that Turk can get a new trial. At the time of the murder, Rocky and his wife Butch (a young Virginia Grey) were around the murder scene.

Rocky and the police lieutenant assigned to the case (Sam Levene) attempt to solve the murder while at loggerheads with one another. Each character tells his or her story in flashback.

This film moves fairly quickly but is ultimately let down by a preposterous denouement. The acting, however, when it isn't great is at least interesting. Heflin is superb - sharp, smart, and funny as Rocky.

Sam Levene gets a bad rap for his performance - yes, the director needed to tone him down. Levene was an accomplished Broadway actor and was giving basically a stage performance.

Patricia Dane, once married to orchestra leader Tommy Dorsey, is pretty and talks like Jean Harlow, particularly when Harlow would try to sound upper class.

Dane didn't get much chance at developing her potential once she told off an MGM executive. In this role, she comes off as cheap and annoying, which is right for the part.

Fairly enjoyable especially for Heflin.