The Tiger Woman

Kane Richmond (Jerry) is approached by Adele Mara (Sharon) to ask mobster Gregory Gaye (Joe) not to kill her husband. Richmond does precisely that but things get confusing when husband turns up dead having committed suicide and left a note. Husband's business partner Richard Fraser (Steve) and Mara find the body along with the suicide note. But, this needs to be destroyed as the insurance policy won't pay out if the cause of death is suicide. Mara and Fraser are also lovers so this note doesn't suit them at all as they could do with the dosh. Goodbye note.

Well, that's just the beginning and already quite a lot is happening. However, whilst the story does progress it just gets boring until the final few scenes when Mara comes into her element. She's pretty good in this film as are all the cast except perhaps for mobster boss Gregory Gaye and his peculiar accent.

The title of this film has nothing to do with a jungle setting or with a horror setting in which a woman turns into a tiger. It has to do with the setting of the film at the Tiger Club. It's like calling a film "the Bomb Squad" but the film not being about bombs or even having a military theme but instead concerning itself with a gang of people who hang out in a club called "The Bomb".

Perhaps it should have been called "The Tell-Tale Pom-Pom instead! There's a deadly-dull detective; a resolution that is patently obvious; a lot of boring, talky scenes that might have been helped by a slight injection of humor; and a typically dependable performance by Adele Mara that is wasted in this crime drama. This plays like a standard television mystery with about the same running time. It's a B movie that is more like a C-, but you may like it if you're willing to grade on a curve.

"The Tiger Woman" is a cheap B-mystery film from Republic Pictures. While it is enjoyable enough to make it worth watching, the mystery itself isn't that mysterious and the smart private eye doesn't seem THAT smart!

When the story begins, Sharon (Adele Mara) arrives to engage private dick Jerry Devery (Kane Richmond). He, of course, is being used by her...and it seems obvious to everyone but the supposedly smart Devery. After helping her with her case, they just happen upon the body of her husband who had apparently just committed suicide. What follows is pretty much what you might expect...if Deverly was a bit slow on the uptake.

I think the biggest strike against the film is Kane Richmond. He made a career out of playing in Bs and serials...and his acting was no better than you'd expect. As for Mara, on the other hand, she was terrific...and I wanted more of her in the movie. As for the script, it's okay but a tad obvious.

Gotta hand it to Republic for "The Tiger Woman", a murder mystery with unusual substance for a Poverty Row studio. I have to say reviewer django-1 just about covered all the bases, and I agree with his review. This is one of Republic's best efforts in a genre which can disintegrate quickly into schlock and formulaic predictability. But the direction and script are a cut above the norm for a small studio and give the picture polish and style.

Too bad they didn't make a series using the good-natured Kane Richmond in his role as Private Eye Jerry Devery, as I found his characterization appealing - just right for a series hero, like Lloyd Nolan as Michael Shayne. Here he is aided and abetted by Adele Mara, the Tiger Woman of the title. She was one of Hollywood's best 'B' femme fatales.

My only complaint is that the murderer's hand is tipped early on and was not as much of a puzzle as it could have been, but I would still rate "The Tiger Woman" a 7 out of 10. It was a big surprise, especially if you're not expecting one.

A budget crime/mystery out of Republic Pictures, The Tiger Woman crams as much as it can into a running time of just under an hour. It's a private detective yarn tinged with a dangerous femme fatale as the plot sends P I Jerry Devery (Kane Richmond) into the world of Sharon Winslow (Adele Mara), who needs him to help get her husband out of debt to the mob. But the husband's death opens up a can of mysterious worms.

Please stop beating your gums.

What follows is a whole bunch of bluffs, wrong leads and red herrings, the latter of which usually involves cigarettes. The pic is strung together via a number of character exchanges where the dialogue pings with humorous spice, in the interim moments there's court shenanigans, murder, beat downs and a beautiful southpaw thrown! It all leads to a genuinely pleasing finale as the reveal seems obvious even though it wasn't, that's how good the twists and turns are in the build up.

Mara smoulders with her big eyes and shapely legs and Richmond offers up good solid lantern jawed machismo. They are supported well by Peggy Stewart, Richard Fraser, Cy Kendall, John Kelly and Addison Richards. Phillip Ford (The Last Crooked Mile/Hideout) directs with classic Republic "B" efficiency and Ernest Miller (The Steel Helmet) photographs to the good staple requirements of black and white crime yarns of the era. 7/10