I was surprised when I saw that this excellent B-movie had no comments at all.I would go as far as to say that Billy Wilder borrowed some of his best ideas for his masterpiece "the big carnival " aka "ace in the hole" from "the crime of Dr Forbes" (he reportedly said he was inspired by a news item).But how can't you think of his movie when ,in this overlooked 1936 work,you see people have a wild time in front of a hole where a man is dying: the "mercy killed hot dogs" short scene alone is worth the price of admission.
The screenplay is very interesting and avoids the triteness of the usual love triangle.Gloria Stuart shines in her scene in the court when she explains what she feels about her husband and the young physician. And I guess mercy killing or euthanasia was not probably an easy safe subject at the time. It's still is an embarrassing matter in 2009.The ending is probably some kind of easy way out,but it is quite smart and ,with the ruthless Hayes code,what else could the writers have done?
A sense of humor tempers this story;the posh ladies visiting the laboratory and their false compassion is a foretaste of the crowds rushing towards the dying scientist.There's also an Italian restaurateur who is subject to egregious gaffes and who illustrates the proverb:"the road to hell is paved with good intentions" .
A very good movie.
