Le poignard mystérieux

this is one of those pleasant surprises that makes buying cheap films you've never heard of before so much fun. the first thing that came to mind as this film unreeled was how much fun the dialogue was. this is the blue collar version of the thin man. what it lacks in dry humor and sly irony, from nick and nora, is made up for in sheer fun. ruth terry is terrific as pat o'brien's wannabe girl. her energy is almost manic, and o'brien plays off it perfectly as the straight man to her ditzy rambles. the rest of the cast doesn't let you down either. arnold, arden and broderick crawford play their parts without flaw. the mystery, per se, is pretty average; realizing that you must wonder why more 'average' plots don't fall into the hands of talented directors, writers and cast and go on to be really good films. my only sorrow is in the DVD i have, the alpha video version #alp4644d. if you can find another print, get it. the visuals are OK, at least i have seen much worse, but the sound track is dreadful. about half of the film i couldn't understand, and i still loved it.

"Slightly Honorable" is a rather strange but enjoyable film. I say strange because it's a serious drama about crime and murder...yet the movie also has an oddly comedic bent to it.

The story begins with the Highway Commissioner dying in an auto accident on a poorly maintained road. This ironic beginning is there to acquaint the audience with the fact that there's a lot of corruption in local government. And, it's not just the Commissioner but the District Attorney as well as the publisher of the local newspaper (Edward Arnold). When once of John Webb's old lady friends is murdered, Webb (Pat O'Brian) is out to determine who did it...and he assumes Cushing and his cronies are behind it.

The film never can be taken all that seriously because it never really takes itself seriously. This isn't a complaint so much as telling you about the style...but it is a bit of a problem with the film takes a dark and unexpected turn near the end. Best see it to see what I mean. Overall, a modestly enjoyable film....nothing about it says must-see, but it will keep your attention.

Ever get stuck watching a movie and you couldn't wait until it ended? This was one of the few that I've seen. Excruciating is a good word. Only a great cast saves it from a lower rating - makes you wonder what they could have done with better material.

"Slightly Honorable" can't decide if it's a comedy or a mystery picture and fails on both levels - not funny and not very mysterious. Ruth Terry is 'cute and perky' but is an annoying presence. Eve Arden is wasted, as is Edward Arnold. Pat O'Brien does his best but it's not enough. The disjointed storyline is not believable and not worth recounting.

If this picture is shown on a rainy day and you have nothing to do, find a good book.

Quite amazing for a B movie!!! Travis Banton was Paramount's top clothes designer in the early thirties. He designed dresses for Marlene Dietrich, Claudette Colbert, Kay Francis and Carole Lombard among others.

John Webb, an attorney, (Pat O'Brien) is invited to a party by Alma (Claire Dodd), an old girlfriend, who is now the mistress of Cushing (Edward Arnold). He meets an annoying singer Ann (Ruth Terry), who he later rescues from the paws of a drunken guest. When Webb finds Alma murdered, he determined to "square" it but can't shake the irritating Ann. Helped by his sassy secretary (Eve Arden) and dopey associate (Broderick Crawford), he is stymied by District Attorney Joyce (oily Alan Dinehart) who is in pretty thick with Cushing. Suspects pile up - Alma's ex husband George (Douglas Dumbrille), even Ann puts her foot in it by implicating Webb!!! As one of the reviewers implied, Ann and Webb would have to be the odd couple of the century. In real life he would never find happiness with an air head like her!!! When Webb's secretary is found dead (Eve Arden didn't get much of a chance to strut her stuff), suspicion puts Webb on the top of the list. Evelyn Keyes has a bit as the new secretary and Phyllis Brookes also has a small part as Cushing's beautiful daughter. Things come to a head in a little Texas cemetery.

The film is excellent because of the superior quality of everyone associated with it. The cast was top notch - aside from Pat O'Brien you have Edward Arnold, Broderick Crawford, Douglas Dumbrille and Alan Dinehart, one of the most suave villains of the 30s. Then on the female side you have the beautiful Claire Dodd, Phyllis Brooks, sassy Eve Arden and the lovely Evelyn Keyes (who would have been excellent as Ann, not nearly so annoying as Ruth Terry). Tay Garnett was a real "man's" director who was at home with action adventures ie "China Seas" (1935) and "Trade Winds" (1938).

Claire Dodd, is definitely my favourite bad girl. When she appeared in a film, good girls like Joan Blondell, Ann Dvorak and Helen Twelvetrees had some pretty anxious moments - she even played Della Street in a couple of early Perry Masons. Whoever she played she always looked a dream. Phyllis Brooks had been a McClelland Barclay model and although she was decorative her acting skills were almost non existent. Evelyn Keyes was more noted for her wit and racy memoirs but she was extremely vivacious and it was always nice to see her in movies.

Recommended.

The overriding story of the film - the murder of a well-known party girl (Claire Dodd) whose body is discovered by crusading attorney John Webb (Pat O'Brien) who also happens to be a former boyfriend - and things don't look good for our hero who is instantly murder suspect number one. Furthermore Webb is trying to get the goods on graft king Vincent Cushing (Edward Arnold). Webb thinks Cushing did the murder and set him up to take the fall, and thus spends the rest of the movie trying to clear his name. The movie is well-paced and everything is moving along in an interesting fashion when every few minutes - like interference on a radio channel - in pops Ruth Terry's character and her incessant yammering. She has her eye set on Webb from the moment she sees him although she says she's 18 and he looks old enough to be her father. She lies about her background, so why couldn't she be lying about her age? If Webb were smarter he'd be equally as worried about getting involved in a statutory rape rap as he is murder. What girl of 18 gets dressed up in a revealing gown, goes to a party full of known hoods, and then is shocked when one puts the moves on her? Or doesn't have the sense to NOT take her dress off in front of a grown man when she's alone in his apartment? She's either 13 or she doesn't have all of her marbles.

I waste so much time on Terry's character here because it distracts from what could have been a very good film. I took off two stars just for the annoyance factor alone. Other than that - and its a big "that" - the film is a great noir with an interesting twist at the end. Robert Osborne said that director Tay Garnett became ill during filming and Walter Wanger had to finish the film out himself with Garnett very upset at the end result. I can only guess that Mr. Garnett's objections were the same as mine.