Before Midnight

From Nov 1933-Aug 1934, Columbia released a forgotten quartet of features starring dependable Ralph Bellamy in the role of Inspector Steve Trent, with "Before Midnight" the first, followed by "One is Guilty," "The Crime of Helen Stanley," and "Girl in Danger." Since only "One is Guilty" is unavailable, one can judge the series by at least three titles, but it's clear that this modest initial entry has more horror touches in its setup. On a dark and stormy night, Inspector Trent is called to the isolated mansion of Edward Arnold (William Jeffrey), who believes he's soon to be murdered based on a family curse involving a pool of blood and a clock that stops. Director Lambert Hillyer proves he was no slouch at delivering oppressive atmosphere (better known for "The Invisible Ray" and "Dracula's Daughter"), and the whodunit aspects are also first rate. Lovely leading lady June Collyer starred opposite Bela Lugosi in a 1935 mystery, "Murder by Television," before giving up acting to enjoy life as the wife of Stuart Erwin. Bellamy solved quite a few cases ("Rendezvous at Midnight," "The Final Hour") before he started playing detective Ellery Queen in 1940, eventually settling into a solid character career that lasted 60 years.

A very young Ralph Bellamy plays Trent who was a character in other mysteries. A man living in fear that he may be murdered, dies in front of everyone. Trent begins to investigate. What follows is a decent plot, but the slow and ponderous pace and the stilted language make it sort of dull. Of course, the sound limitations of the time affected everything. I'm interested to see other Trent movies. He is one of the most dedicated smokers I have ever seen. There are seven or eight scenes where he lights up and blows smoke in the air, even in a science lab. Either Bellamy had some serious nicotine needs or it was typical of the character. Nevertheless, this works decently in the Dark and Stormy Night category.

Good, tight murder mystery that is brief and no-nonsense in its approach. It is a pre-code film but there's nothing here that might have been objectionable at the time. Also missing is the 30's habit of inserting comic relief into a story that doesn't need any, and this one doesn't need it. George Cooper plays Stubby, a dim-witted assistant detective who comes off as dim-witted but not as comic relief.

Ralph Bellamy is Detective Trent, trying to solve a murder that takes place on a dark and stormy (and very noisy) night in a mansion with the usual suspects roaming around. What strikes you is the tone of all players, and especially Bellamy, as there is not a hint of the good-natured warmth or friendliness normally found in most pictures of this or any other kind - just a group grimly determined to get to the bottom of the proceedings. No jokes, no romance, just the facts.

Nevertheless, it is well worth your time. It is an old-fashioned whodunnit that will challenge your own powers of deduction - and no laughing, please.

The film is told in flashback by a chief of police to a detective looking for a promotion. The Arnold case, he says is the sort of case that when solved warrants a promotion. Ralph Bellamy is Inspector Trent of the New York Detective Bureau. Called to Forest Lake and the Arnold residence, Trent is asked to look into a possible murder in the offing. It seems Arnold is a superstitious man and any time blood was found under the portrait on an ancestor the head of the house hold dies the next day. Time is running out. As Arnold shows Trent the second part of the superstition, a clock that stops a minute before the murder, the clock stops, a window bursts open and Arnold dies.

A complicated and pre-code murder mystery this is almost a straight forward police procedural as we watch Trent try to solve the case. Bellamy plays Trent in a no nonsense hard boiled style that is atypical of mysteries of this sort. Of course there is no way to know whats going on since some of the goings on are so convoluted that you can't figure it out unless they tell you. Still its a good movie who's complication keep you interested. Certainly not a great film, it is a very good one that bears a second viewing just so you can see what you missed.

Definitely worth seeing.

6.5 out out of 10 rounded up to 7 out of 10 for IMDb purposes

Before Midnight (1933)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

A man invited Detective Trent (Ralph Bellamy) over to share his fears that he's about to be murdered. A few minutes later the man is dead and it's up to the detective to try and figure out how he was murder and who did it. This is yet another entry in the seemingly never-ending "old dark house" genre. As usual, we're given a murder, a hero and countless suspects. We also get the usual clichés that you find in a film like this. I've seen dozens, if not hundreds of these films and it's hard to find one that offers up anything new original and this one here is no different. Even though the film doesn't offer anything too new, it does feature a couple very good twists that I didn't see coming and Bellamy is as entertaining as always. I think what really makes the film work is the performance by Bellamy who really knows how to mix up the charm, comedy and seriousness. He does very good with the role and manages to work well with all the other actors and can deliver whatever the film is needing in any scene. June Collyer is pretty good as the woman various men want and Claude Gillingwater is good in his role as well. Fred "Snowflake" Toones plays the black taxi driver and delivers most of the "comedy" in the film. The screenplay pretty much follows every "old dark house" film that preceded it as we get a complicated murder, the investigation and countless people lying to try and cover up their involvement. What was so funny here is that the screenplay was quite lazy in terms of the characters and their lies. A character would start lying to cover up what he did, Bellamy would ask a single question and then the character would break down and admit what they did. This happens at least five times in the film and one begins to wonder why at least one of them wouldn't try to get away with the lie at least a second time before admitting what they had done. This Columbia film runs a brief 63-minutes and should keep fans of the genre entertained. Others should probably seek out one of the better entries.