The Black Doll

When Nelson Rood (C Henry Gordon) finds a black doll on his desk, he knows it can mean only one thing - his death. Sure enough, later that night, Rood is killed by a knife to the back. Rood was never the kindest man in the world, so he had his fair share of enemies. Rood's daughter's boyfriend, Nick Halstead (Donald Woods), fancies himself an amateur detective and sets out to investigate. But Halstead will have to stay out of the way of the local bumbling sheriff if he's to find a killer.

Based on the IMDb rating (5.9) and all the positive reviews, I know The Black Doll has some fans. I'm, however, not among them. While I enjoyed some of the mystery elements of the story and a character or two, I had a couple of big problems with the film that kept me from enjoying it. First, as my little intro suggests, boyfriend Halstead does most of the real detective work. And by that I mean he makes a series of wild guesses generally based on very little real evidence, yet somehow he's miraculously correct 100% of the time. I like the solutions to my mysteries to be more fact-based. Second, bumbling Sheriff Renick (Edgar Kennedy) is more than I can take. He's just not funny. His brand of comedy, including a pocket full of pipes he continuously smokes and then breaks, doesn't appeal to me at all. Sadly, Kennedy ruined any hope of me finding much entertainment in The Black Doll.

3/10

Because they have good casts and a nice dosage of humor, I like the Crime Club murder mysteries and this entry is no exception. The wealthy and overbearing Nicholas Rood finds a Mexican voodoo like black doll on his desk. According to Rood's butler, this signifies an impending death. And sure enough, Rood is killed by a thrown knife. There are suspects galore - among them Rood's sister and wife, the butler and two former partners from whom Rood has been hiding for several years. Rood's daughter and clever boyfriend (the charming Nan Grey and the ever affable Donald Woods) take the lead in the investigation, which is a good thing because the cops investigating the crime, Sheriff Renick and his deputy are pretty dimwitted to say the least. Edgar Kennedy as the Sheriff provides most of the welcome humor. In fact, Kennedy has one of my all time favorite stupid remarks. He says to Woods, "I know something you don't know." "What?" "You're standing on my foot." Even with lines like this, it' a fun and an entertaining movie. Interesting to me is that Holmes Herbert who starred in a number of silent films has the role of Dr. Giddings in this movie. Herbert never rose above character roles in sound films.

Boy, is rich old Nelson Rood (C. Henry Gordon) asking for it! He is rude and imperious with everyone around him. So when he finds a black doll on his desk with a knife through it, he knows it's a genuine threat.

Who might want to harm Rood? Well….He is cruel to his sister, who lives with him and depends on his support. He scoffs at his nephew, a rebellious young man who has been forging his uncle's name on checks. He tries to chase away his daughter's fiancé. He even insults his faithful butler. And then there are the two old "business partners" from whom he has been hiding for 15 years, seemingly the only two people alive who could have known about the black doll….

Nan Grey and Donald Cook make a nice pair as the intelligent daughter and her clever fiancé. Cook is right on the job when the murder is discovered; true, it's a murder investigation, but he generally gives the impression that he is having great fun with it all. Grey exhibits charm and personality—she's smarter than your average B movie heroine here, and fully a match for Cook's exuberance. (Alas, Grey is not really given quite enough to do.)

Edgar Kennedy is strictly comic relief as the sheriff, but if you like Edgar then this film is for you. His best line: "When I'm investigating a crime, I'm not a man—I'm a bloodhound!" He's blustery, hilarious and totally inept right to the film's final shot.

The mystery plot itself is pretty standard….but it keeps you guessing. The dialog is good and the performances energetic. Lots of fun for B mystery fans.

One line that mystified me: "Get me a jar of jelly, some talcum powder, and a plate." (Donald Woods apparently preparing to take some fingerprints. All for naught, however, as one of Sheriff Kennedy's deputies eats the jelly.)

There is a liberal dose of humor in this movie where Edgar Kennedy, master of the slow burn, plays a sheriff investigating a murder in a small town. The point of the plot is the Black Doll of the title and a harbinger of death which appears and disappears through out the proceedings. Kennedy is "aided" by a newspaper reporter who manages to put the whole thing together.

Its a breezy 65 minutes that fly by almost as an after thought. The mystery is clever but it seems stretched out to fill the required running time. The cast is quite good and the whole thing has the feel of something from a lazy Sunday.

Its so breezy as to be utterly forgettable. I recently found this on one of my video tapes and was totally baffled by what it was. I know that I had watched this previously since I removed the commercials at some earlier time, but I can't for the life of me remember ever seeing it other than when I just popped it into the VCR last night. Now some twelve hours later I find the film rapidly disappearing from my mind.

If you want to see a film you'll enjoy for its running time but which will leave no trace on you consciousness, this is the movie for you.

1938's "The Black Doll" was the second of seven Crime Club mysteries from Universal, and the first of two that starred Donald Woods and lovely Nan Grey. Although not included in Universal's popular SHOCK! package of classic horror films issued to television in the late 50's, it did air an amazing 4 times on Pittsburgh's Chiller Theater- December 14 1968 (followed by 1961's "Creature from the Haunted Sea"), May 30 1970 (following 1958's "Invasion of the Animal People"), April 10 1971 (following 1942's "Bowery at Midnight"), and July 14 1973 (following 1936's "Bat Men of Africa"). The opening credits roll to the Franz Waxman score from "Bride of Frankenstein" (as does "The Lady in the Morgue"), with snatches throughout heard from "The Invisible Man," "WereWolf of London," "The Raven," "The Invisible Ray," and "Dracula's Daughter." The mystery is a solid one, featuring C. Henry Gordon as Nelson Rood, who receives a curious black doll as an unwanted reminder of his past murder of a colleague that discovered a rich mine. This ill omen is known only to Rood and his two partners, Walling (John Wray) and Mallison (Addison Richards), both of whom are summoned to Rood's remote country mansion, shortly before the host is killed in front of his daughter (Nan Grey), an eyewitness to the crime through her mirror, but who never saw the murderer. Her boyfriend is Nick Halstead (Donald Woods), who arrives on the scene before the moronic sheriff (Edgar Kennedy), plus the local doctor (Holmes Herbert) living nearby. Also residing in the victim's home are his sister (Doris Lloyd) and her son (William Lundigan), a gambler and forger caught in the act by the now dead Rood. Nan Grey is just adorable, and the climax finds our hero solving the crimes at the breakfast table (!). Plenty of suspects and good atmosphere, let down only by the increasingly irritating antics from the inept authorities, still perfect for late night viewing. The next Crime Club would be "The Lady in the Morgue."