Meurtre au chenil

William Powell plays Philo Vance for the last time in this enjoyable Warner Brothers B murder mystery. Because it is a B, there are some problems with the script and some problems with the art design. I'll get into that later.

Vance is at a dog show on Long Island showing his Scottish terrier Captain. This is where we meet Archer Coe (Robert Barrat), also a dog show enthusiast as well as a collector of Chinese Art who has an unfaithful mistress (Helen Vinson). Coe argues with and crosses just about every character in the film. Coe is discovered dead the next morning, a bullet in his head, the gun that shot him in his hand, a head wound from a blunt instrument, and a stab wound in his back with his bedroom door locked from the inside. The police are about to call this one a suicide(???) when enters Philo Vance to systematically figure out who did it. Oh, and there is an additional body in the foyer closet.

Powell is great here as Vance, the perfect combination of masculinity and sophistication. He played the same role over at Paramount three other times. Oddly enough, Eugene Pallette as Sgt. Heath is ported over here in the same role he played in the other films. He is the same kind of sidekick cop that Guild (Nat Pendleton) was in The Thin Man. He probably would have never found the body in the closet and had Coe ruled a suicide if not for Vance, but his self esteem is never bothered by this and the two play off of each other perfectly as old pals.

Michael Curtiz' direction gives this B some extra punch, and I never thought I'd see Jack La Rue convincingly play an effete Italian after having seen him as a ruthless thug in "Story of Temple Drake", but he does pull it off.

There are a couple of holes I will just mention. First, before Coe is murdered, the dog of one of his foes is kidnapped and killed. The killer of that dog is never discovered nor is it even mentioned later in the film. Next, when Vance is describing how the murders were carried out, he has a set of detailed miniature models of the buildings involved in his explanation of the crime. These models can be broken out with detailed sectional views of each. Where on earth did he get such a thing on short notice?

The first thing I liked about this mystery movie is that the early minutes of it are packed tightly with lots of storyline. And this is a somewhat complex story, particularly for a time (1933) when such movies tended to be rather light. Pay attention here or be lost! It's also nice to have a different setting...a kennel club (at least early on in the film)! Novel! Philo Vance (played wonderfully by William Powell) isn't as smooth and sophisticated as Nick Charles, and there's not the witty banter between man and wife you find in the Thin Man series, but this is a good character. And, you'll see lots of character actors you'll recognize (although probably not by name). Of particular note is the gravel-voiced Eugene Palette (and if you want to read an interesting bio, Google him). Also look for Ralph Morgan, lesser-known brother of actor Frank Morgan; you'll see the resemblance.

I won't recount the plot. It's almost too complex to do so, but I'll just repeat that this is a sophisticated mystery for 1933! Recommended!

William Powell, Michael Curtiz, and a good murder mystery make "The Kennel Murder case" an entertaining film. Philo Vance (Powell) does some of his most difficult deducting, and Curtiz's direction keeps things moving quickly.

When rich, obnoxious Archer Coe is murdered, the case causes lots of difficulty for the police. It's bad enough that Coe's meanness gave a good reason for murder to pretty much anyone who ever knew him, but it's even worse that the clues are so complicated that he could have been killed in at least two completely different ways. Only Vance can figure it all out, and after some good twists, there is an interesting and creative solution.

Though basically filmed as a routine whodunit, there are several good features besides the story itself. Powell is as lively as Vance as he was later as Nick Charles in the "Thin Man" films. Most of the rest of the cast is good, too, especially Mary Astor as one of the suspects and Eugene Pallette as the earnest but not very bright sergeant in charge of the case. Everything moves along quickly with many good touches of humor.

Most mystery fans will find this movie entertaining and enjoyable.

One of the better Vance films succeeds more on interesting plot and artful direction by none other than Michael Curtiz. This time around a generally hated financier is found dead - shot in the head - in his locked and bolted bedroom on the upper floor. Philo Vance, hearing of the situation while about to set off for Italy, decides to end his vacation and try to solve what he thinks is a murder and what everyone else is considering a suicide. William Powell is as affable a Philo Vance as you will find. He never seems to press and is always very smooth in what he says and does. Powell is aided by a host of very talented actors - some first-rate character actors and actresses like Mary Astor as a niece that hated her uncle, Ralph Morgan as the dead man's secretary, Paul Cavanaugh as a rival dog fancier, Arthur Hohl as a mysterious butler, Helen Vinson as the next door kept blonde, and two really good performances by James Lee as the Chinese cook and portly Eugene Palette as a wise-cracking police detective. Add into the mix a wonderfully comedic turn by Etienne Girardot as a public coroner always missing his meal. It is this depth of suspects and a story that has many plots twists and turns that make The Kennel Murder Case a fast-moving, fun mystery.

The film starts in the Long Island Kennel Club where is murdered a dog,later is appeared dead as a case of committing suicide a collector millionaire called Arched,but sleuth debonair Philo Vance(William Powell)to be aware of actually killing.There are many suspects : the secretary(Ralph Morgan),the butler,the Chinese cooker,the contender(Paul Cavanagh) in kennel championship for revenge killing dog ,the nephew(Mary Astor) facing off her tyrant uncle,the Italian man(Jack La Rue),the brother,the attractive neighbour..Stylish Vance tries to find out who murdered tycoon,appearing many clues ,as a book titled:Unsolved murders. The police Inspector(Eugene Palette)and a coroner are helped by Vance to investigate the mysterious death.The sympathetic forensic medic examines boring the continuous body-count .Who's the killer?.The public enjoys immensely about guess the murder.

The picture is an interesting and deliberate whodunit,it's a laborious and intriguing suspense tale.The personages are similar to Agatha Christie stories, all they are various suspects.They are developed on a whole gallery of familiar actors well characterized from the period represented by a glittering casting to choose from their acting range from great to worst. Powell is in his habitual elegant and smart form as Philo.He's protagonist of two famed detectives cinema,this one, and elegant Nick Charles along with Nora(Mirna Loy)make the greatest marriage detectives. Special mention to Mary Astor as the niece enamored of suspect Sir Thomas,she was a noted actress of noir cinema(Maltese falcon). The movie is magnificently directed by Hollywood classic director Michael Curtiz.He directs utilizing modern techniques as the image of dead through a lock-door,a split image while are speaking for phone and curtain-image.The tale is remade as ¨Calling Philo Vance¨(1940).The film is a good production Warner Bros, by Vitagraph Corp.