The Falcon's Brother

This is the fourth of the Falcon films, in which both George Sanders and his real life brother Tom Conway appear. It was the occasion for the handover of the role. Sanders and Conway have many scenes together, and vie to out-do each other in suaveness and urbanity, and it is a tie. Then Sanders is knocked unconscious and spends much of the film in bed, which he doubtless found restful. At the end, Sanders sacrifices his life in the struggle against Nazism (it is after all 1942 and the plot deals with German agents) and presto, Tom Conway is and for the remaining series of films will be the Falcon. This film has a higher budget than the preceding ones (there is even a ship), the plot is complicated, it is all more solid and convincing. In fact, it is a very entertaining tale. Keye Luke has now become the falcon's butler, adding his own charm and wit to the team, and doing amusing impersonations of pidgin English (he was Chinese) when he wants to put off 'dames' who phone too often. The falcon's sidekick is now played by Don Barclay, which like the addition of Keye Luke is a great improvement. This film was edited by Mark Robson, later to be a famous director, and the improved editing shows. However, because the screenwriters have changed, all the great gags and one-liners have disappeared, there is no more crackling dialogue, and the Falcon series is no longer a laugh a minute.

This is a B-movie detective film from back in the day when such series were common. While The Falcon series isn't as interesting or fun as Charlie Chan or Sherlock Holmes, it is one of the better examples of the genre. Interestingly enough, growing up I often couldn't remember if I'd just seen a Falcon film or a Saint film, as both series were produced (for the most part) by RKO and many featured George Sanders playing the same character in almost every way aside from their name! The formula and action was identical--both detectives were sophisticated rich guys who mostly dabbled in investigating crimes out of a desire to avoid boredom or meet women! From a historical standpoint, this is THE must-see film of either series, as it stars George Sanders AND his nearly identical-looking and talking real-life brother, Tom Conway--who when on to play The Falcon in nine films! It seems that George was tired of this series work and wanted out of the contract, so they decided to use his equally talented older brother--who made a smooth transition to the role. In fact, it's pretty cool to see BOTH Falcons in the same film and I really appreciated the unusual and unexpected ending (which I WON'T divulge so I'll keep it suspenseful).

Apart from Conway and Sanders, the film is also better than the average Falcon film, as the plot is very good and the supporting cast all do an excellent job of combining mystery with a light sense of humor. This isn't an intellectual or deep film, but represents a good and watchable B-movie that has held up well through the years.

When I was a kid I used to enjoy these Falcon movies, but today they seem so corny and the images are so confined to the B-movie genre that they're barely watchable today. This one only interests me because it's the last in the series for GEORGE SANDERS, who insisted on bowing out of the Falcon series by having himself killed by an assassin's bullet in the final reel. This gave TOM CONWAY, who shares the screen with his half-brother in this one, the chance to assume the Falcon role for the next nine films.

This one involves Nazi spies, Latin America, poisoned cigars, an assassination attempt on a Latin American diplomat and lots of red herrings to hide the fact that The Saint is not the only one assigned to the case. It's a modest entry in the series and never rises above the routine material to be anything more than a forgettable programmer.

JANE RANDOLPH proves that she had a certain style as the feminine lead and her scenes with Conway and Sanders are the most enjoyable aspects of the film.

Except for the switcheroo, it's a routine Falcon entry. The series was never big on mystery or atmosphere, staples of better whodunits like the Chan series. Instead, the entries lean heavily on sprightly charm supplied first by Sanders and now by Conway, and a steady stream of statuesque, well-upholstered girls, which this entry supplies in spades. Looks like RKO may have used the series to photograph some of their younger talent.

It turns out here after a couple false starts that the brothers are on the trail of Nazi spies, not surprising for 1942. However, I am surprised that the two actors generally deliver such engaged performances over the course of the entire series. After all, the Falcon role is basically one-dimensional, requiring only that the actor be suavely charming and not much else. I expect Sanders had become bored and quit before losing interest; at the same time, Conway picks up nicely on what has become a family trust.

The best scenes are with Conway and the sprightly reporter Randolph, whose well-scripted chemistry works. It's also a good chance to ogle high fashion, circa 1942. On the other hand, is the witless comedy relief from Clark, Gargan, and Barclay, blowing little lame holes through the proceedings. Anyway, the movie may be unique in film series annals for the way it creates the switcheroo, which really does amount to a startling departure. Otherwise, it's strictly a routine affair.

The Falcon, Gay Lawrence (George Sanders), is headed dockside to meet his brother, Tom Lawrence (Tom Conway), who is arriving from South America. What he doesn't know is that before the ship docks, his brother has been declared dead. The cause of death - suicide. Knowing that something's up, The Falcon follows the woman who found his brother's body to an upscale dress shop. But before he can question the woman, she's also killed. After Gay is put out of commission by a hit-and-run, Tom steps out of the shadows to take over the case.

The transition from Gay to Tom is handled as smoothly and deftly as any transition I can think of. It helps that George Sanders and Tom Lawrence were real life brothers. Because of their familial similarities, it's easy to believe that Gay and Tom are also brothers. While I think I prefer George in the role, Tom more than holds his own and is about as enjoyable in this film and the Falcon films to follow.

The plot in The Falcon's Brother is about as good as any you'll find in a "B" from RKO. The mystery is a fun one with plenty of suspicious characters and interesting clues. In fact, the magazine clues were as solid as any I've seen in any film of this type. It's quite enjoyable to watch Tom and Company go through their paces and put the pieces together. I also got a kick out of the dress designer talking about how the gowns were made in compliance with government regulations concerning the amount of material that could be used given the war time era the film was made. It's just a small thing, but it was an interesting insight into 1942. My biggest complaint is the way the finale feels rushed. It seems that a lot of these comedy/mystery films did a good job of leading you right up to the end and then blew it.

Sanders and Conway are joined by an especially strong cast given the film's limited budget. Jane Randolph is a standout. I'm glad to see she comes back in the next film. And I thought Keye Luke was very funny as The Falcon's butler, Jerry. The bits where he purposefully plays up the Asian stereotypes of the era to his advantage are quite good.

6/10