One Body Too Many

One Body Too Many is a production from Pine-Thomas Paramount B picture unit and after seeing it I'm convinced it was a script and story that was meant for Bob Hope. But old ski nose either rejected this one or was out entertaining the troops during the second World War. So Paramount gave the project to its B unit and got Jack Haley to play the lead.

Pine-Thomas assembled a nice cast in a project that was unusual for them, normally they did economical action/adventure stories. This is a comedy involving a late millionaire who was a firm believer in astrology, so much so that he requested to be buried in a glass covered mausoleum like Lenin at the Kremlin so that he would be always under the stars at night. After that the living relatives of whom he didn't have too good an opinion of would split up the estate. Until then they had to live at his house until the burial was done.

Poor Haley plays the Bob Hope like schnook who is an insurance salesman and keeps an appointment that he made with the old guy before he passed away. Haley arrives just in time for the reading of the will and the lawyer for the estate thinks he's a bodyguard he hired. Never mind Jack takes the job and the fun starts. If you think a couple of murders that follow is fun.

Also in the cast are Bela Lugosi and Blanche Yurka who are the butler and maid. I wish the film had a lot more of them. They look and act so sinister with some lovely eye twinkles. Lugosi had a nice gift for comedy that was too rarely seen on film.

The lovely cast of relatives of whom one is a murderer include Lyle Talbot, Jean Parker, Maxine Fife, Lucien Littlefield, Douglas Fowley and Dorothy Granger. Now who do you think is our killer in the cast?

One Body Too Many has some funny moments, but a lot of it is a rehash of material from better films.

So do you think Hope was busy with the USO or did he pass on this one?

I've always liked those 1940s comedies where a bunch of people are stuck in a house on a stormy night. I don't consider this an especially good example of this sub-genre. Part of that is just personal preferences; I prefer the snappy wise guy to the jittery nebbish, the role played by Haley. Part of it is probably that I've seen so many of this that I'm pickier than I used to be. But mainly I just don't find this movie that funny. There is a cute running joke involving coffee, but outside of that this struggles just to be mildly amusing.

The film is also just poorly filmed. It may in part be a bad print, but much of it is so dark that you can't really tell what's going on. The movie also has the most convoluted premise of any of these movies, although that didn't really affect my enjoyment of it.

Relatives and loyal servants are gathered to hear the reading of Mr. Cyrus Wentworth'S last wishes. As the lawyer reads the wishes Cyrus snubs everyone there. Then the sort of tontine plot is delivered. Some will be rich others may get $1.50. It all hinges on whether the deceased gets his wish and is laid to rest above ground so he can see the stars. Or wither some unscrupulous person(s) will bury him underground thus reversing the will.

Not trusting each other and wanting to get some sleep they hire a guard. Instead, an insurance salesman Albert Tuttle (Jack Haley) appears and is mistaken for the guard.

The fun begins.

All the standard clichés and scenarios are played out appropriately. The only exceptional part is waiting to see who will drink the coffee and Bela Lugosi's facial expressions.

These old "revolving panels and candlelight" mysteries are usually a mix of elements played for laughs more than shivers. Jack Haley is an insurance salesman mistaken for a detective hired to guard the corpse of a millionaire all night so that the provisions of the old man's will can be satisfied. The greedy heirs must stay in this mini insane asylum until morning or lose their inheritance. Midnight murders prevail, of course, with the usual wisecracks, jealous insults and idioms of the day (or night). Jack Haley is the reluctant hero of sorts in this wee hours fiasco, although he would rather be somewhere else. For the genre, however, it is true to form and worth a look.

Jack Haley (Wizard of Oz's Tin Man) and Bela Lugosi star in this horror-suspense-comedy. Although calling it horror is like calling Pauly Shore comedy.

A man dies and leaves a very strange will: if his body is buried underground, the order of the inheritances will be reversed so the person with the smallest share receives the largest and so on. Jack Haley shows up as an insurance salesman, but ends up becoming a detective to see who is trying to steal the body and bury it prematurely. Since no one knows what inheritance they're getting, it could be anyone.

Highlight of the movie is by far Bela Lugosi as the butler. He tries numerous times to serve the guests coffee which may or may not be laced with rat poison. (The ambiguity is seemingly cleared up at the end of the film, though I cannot say even I know for sure.) Other commentators have said the film was shot in poor lighting. They're right, but I didn't really have a problem with it. I never was confused about what was happening or where anyone was on the screen. And filming this movie in color probably (though who can say for sure?) would have detracted from its character.

A problem I did have - not related to the lighting - was trying to figure out who everyone was. Maybe I was not paying attention or maybe the plot is weak, but many characters don't have memorable names or associations with each other. This left me confused about who was who at certain key moments. I'm still not clear on who the actual villain is (although a second viewing would probably clear this up).

I laughed, I was suspended, and I laughed some more. Really great film by the standards of the time and worth watching today.