The Murder Man

A man is murdered and hard-drinking reporter Spencer Tracy is on the story. Tracy specializes in murder cases, not only scooping other papers but often figuring out the cases before the police do. Here his investigation leads the police to the murdered man's shady business partner. I won't reveal more as this one has a dandy twist. If you haven't watched yet, I strongly recommend you avoid reading too much about this movie so you don't accidentally read any big spoilers.

Tracy's terrific in a complex role in this smart, fast-paced crime drama from MGM. It's notable today for being Jimmy Stewart's film debut (as a reporter named Shorty). Stewart's just one of the many good actors in the supporting cast, which includes Lionel Atwill, William Demarest, Robert Barrat, Harvey Stephens, George Chandler, and beautiful Virginia Bruce as the girl in love with Tracy. This is one that deserves some wider recognition. It's somewhat surprising it was made after the Code was in effect and surprising it was made at MGM. But then again, they made Fury the following year, which also starred Tracy and was grittier than their normal fare. It's worth a look for anyone who's a fan of '30s crime dramas and a must-see for Spencer Tracy fans.

The thirties was an amazing time in film. Noir was to be refined, with one of its main elements being our on-screen detective. Before the conventions matured, we had a good 6- 7 years of experiments about embedded story and on screen surrogates. Some of those surrogates were detectives of different kinds, including newspaper reporters and insurance guys.

This is one of the most interesting experiments. The large shape has our detective being both outside and inside the story, what I can folding. He is a writer, and writes both the outside and inside stories. An inner observer of our folded man is an earnest woman. There are a lot of symmetries in this thing — very tight writing and lots of screen details.

One screen detail is a good example. We have a nervous street huckster who factors as an innocent in the murder. He is portrayed with a delicate balance of confidence and control when he is in his element and slightly hidden deference when with the law. He is court to testify as to what he saw. As he is called, he hands his hat to the surprised cop beside him. There is a 3 second — not even that — interplay concerning the hat, and its role in the social order. It is perfect.

I came to not like Spencer Tracey in his later career, his stock mannerisms and one-size- fits-all reflexes. But here he is fresh, spontaneous, right on.

Ted's Evaluation -- 3 of 3: Worth watching.

Murder Man, The (1935)

*** (out of 4)

Very good "B" movie from MGM has Spencer Tracy playing newspaper reporter Steve Grey who has the nickname of "The Murder Man" due to him being able to crack any case. The latest big story deals with a murdered insurance man who appears to have been killed by his partner (Harvey Stephens) but he claims he's innocent and the majority of the evidence from the police captain (Lionel Atwill) really doesn't tie him to the events. THE MURDER MAN looks like it was a rushed job and there's no question not too much money went into it but the cast, story and direction make it a must see and it's really a gem that should be better known. The greatest aspect is certainly the cast as we get veterans like Tracy, Atwill and Virginia Bruce but we also get a small role played by James Stewart. I'm sure a number of lesser actors could have been handed this role but it's quite easy to see that they wouldn't have brought as much to it as Tracy. Tracy has that terrific ability to make acting look easy but the role here was a pretty difficult one because he's character is dealing with alcohol abuse as well as other issues. Tracy does a remarkable job at showing off all of these emotions and while this certainly isn't as great as many of his future roles, the actor really gives it his all and delivers a memorable performance. Bruce is also very good in her role as the girlfriend and the two have some nice chemistry together. I was also quite impressed with Stephens who manages to be quite cocky early in the film and the actor really gets to shine towards the end when he's cracking from about to hit the chair. Stewart doesn't have a very big role but he does what he can with it. I love watching legends before they were stars and here's the perfect example because it's not everyday you can see someone like Stewart playing such a role. Tracy and Stewart share a couple scenes together, which will certainly please film buffs. The story itself is a pretty strong one and when the final twist happens you can't help but feel good that the film would stick to its gun and go for the shock instead of dealing some weak, lame attempt to make everything happy.

Spencer Tracy is the title character. He is a newspaper's ace crime reporter in this very good movie that could have been great.

I've read quite a lot about Tracy's life. The character he plays seems to have many traits and behavioral patterns in common with the real Spencer Tracy, who was apparently a far darker person than many of the benevolent roles he played.

This moves along at a good clip. At times it's upsetting, at others it's exciting.

Virginia Bruce is the lonely-hearts columnist at the paper. She has crush on Tracy but he has secrets and a past that have kept him from allowing a relationship to develop. (A couple years earlier, before the Code, it well might have developed anyway.) Bruce was a beautiful woman, with a poignant, ethereal quality. Here, however, she is unflatteringly costumed, made-up, and/or lit. She comes across more as a mannish, dowdy old maid schoolteacher than the romantic leading lady she was.

"Fury" is not a sunny movie, to say the least. This is another movie that shows a different Tracy we know from his two 1930s Oscar-winning roles, the collaborations with Katharine Hepburn, and "Father of the Bride" and its sequel.

The very darkest of all his movies, however, is "The People Against O'Hara." I consider that one a classic. This is not quite a classic but it's unique and gripping.

This is an exceptional little film due to an excellent script. Spencer Tracy stars as an alcoholic newspaper man who specializes in covering murder investigations. His ability to guess what occurred and how it occurred is amazing--as again and again he's able to piece together the little it of evidence they have to determine the facts of the case. As a result, he always beats out the competing papers for breaks in the investigation. However, Spencer actually has a bit of an edge in this particular case, but I don't want to say more as it would spoil the film.

The writing, acting and direction are all exceptional and the film is well worth seeing. Overall, an excellent effort by Tracy playing a role VERY close to home, as he himself was an alcoholic and binge drinker in real life--just like the character in the film. Also, look for a very young Jimmy Stewart in a rather bland supporting role before he became a star.