Harrison's Reports (1943)

202 December, 18, 1943 "The Spider Woman" with Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce (Universal, ]an. 21; time, 62 wh'ti.) This latest of the Sherlock Holmes murder mystery melodramas is moderately entertaining program fare. Like the other pictures in the series, this, too, has a far-fetched plot, and the unravelling of the mystery depends not on logic, but on the master detective's amazing powers of deduction. Since it is obvious from the start who the criminals are, the interest lies, not in the discovery of their identities, but in the manner in which they are apprehended: — In an effort to solve a series of mysterious suicides, which he believed to be the work of a diabolical murder ring, Sherlock Holmes (Basil Rathbone) makes it appear as if he had drowned on a fishing trip. When the newspapers publicize his "demise," Holmes disguises himself as an Indian Prince and contrives to meet Adrea Spedding (Gale Sondergaard) at a gambling club, which was a noted hang-out for criminals. After suffering heavy losses, Holmes confides to Adrea that he could not meet his obligations. Adrea, feigning sympathy, directs him to a friend who would loan him money on his life insurance. Certain that she belonged to a murder ring that loaned its victims money and then murdered them to collect the insurance, Holmes arranges to become a borrower. That night, aided by Dr. Watson (Nigel Bruce), his old friend. Holmes waits in his own home for the murder ring to strike. His intuition proves correct, for, soon after midnight, a gigantic spider enters his bedroom through an air duct, and leaps upon a wax likeness of himself. Killing the spider, Holmes takes it to a noted entomologist who identifies the insect as a deadly Lycosa Carnivera, whose venom caused so much unbearable agony that the victim is lead to self-destruction. The following day, Adrea, who had become aware of Holmes' masquerade as an Indian, makes an unsuccessful attempt on his life. Through bits of evidence, which he gathers during his investigation. Holmes deduces that Adrea's gang committed the murders with the aid of a pygmy. He locates a carnival in London, where a pygmy act had one of the concessions, and there, with the aid of Dr. Watson, manages to round up the gang, thus solving London's suicide murders. Bertram Millhauscr wrote the screen play, and Roy William Neill produced and directed it. Morally suitable for all. "What a Man" with Johnny Downs and Wanda McKay (Monogram, Dec. 23; time, 73 min.) Based on the familiar "worm that turns" theme, this routine program comedy will probably get by as a supporting feature in small-town and neighborhood theatres. Little originality has been put into the story or the treatment and, except for a rousing fist fight towards the finish, the action is slow. Johnny Downs, as the meek clerk who eventually becomes masterful, and Wanda McKay, as the girl he wins, handle their assignments competently, but there is little they can do with the weak story material : — Johnny Downs, a timid bachelor working for a drug firm, becomes involved with the police when a gangster is killed on the doorstep of his home. The police inform him that the gangster's moll had escaped, and search his home. Meanwhile Wanda McKay, a mysterious young lady with a suitcase, had taken refuge in the house secretly, hiding in a closet. The following morning, Downs discovers her sleeping on a couch. Wanda, to prevent his getting rid of her, feigns illness. He permits her to remain. Downs eventually falls in love with her, although still under the impression that she was the dead gangster's moll. Under her guidance, he slowly rids himself of his timid nature. Meanwhile at the office. Downs' firm had been undergoing an investigation. The investigators learn that Downs had submitted a reorganization plan to the office manager, but it had been turned down. Pleased with the plan, the investigators oust the manager and appoint Downs in his place. Downs' arrives home jubilant to inform Wanda of the appointment, only to find that she had left for an unknown destination, accompanied by Robert Kent, the firm's smart-alecky salesman. Downs' efforts to locate both Wanda and Kent are unavailing. Weeks later, when Kent returns to the office, Downs accuses him of running off with Wanda. Kent protests that he had only given her a lift to the station, but Downs doubts him and gives him a thrashing. Returning home, Downs finds Joan and the head of his firm waiting for him. He learns that Joan is his daughter, and that she had taken refuge in his home to hide valuable papers, which some men in the firm sought to destroy. The situation straightened out. Downs proposes to Joan and becomes the boss' son-in-law. William X. Crowley and Beryl Sachs wrote the screen play, Barney A. Sarecky produced it, and William Beaudine directed it. The cast includes Etta McDaniels and others. Morally suitable for all. "The Desert Song" with Dennis Morgan, Irene Manning and Bruce Cabot (Warner Bros, no release date set; time, 96 min.) From a production point of view, "The Desert Song," which has been photographed in Technicolor, is an artistic achievement. As entertainment, it is better than fair, and it should please class audiences, as well as the rank and file. Since none of the players mean much at the box-office, its fate will depend entirely on the popularity of the operetta, which for years has been famed for its musical score. Produced once before in 1929 by Warners, the story has been changed substantially, bringing this version up to date (1939) by presenting the cruelty of the government forces against the Riffs as the result of Nazi intrigue to gain control of Dakar. The hero, who in the old version was the son of a French officer, is now shown as an American. The story itself is nothing to brag about, but it serves as a framework for the music, which is sung pleasantly by Dennis Morgan and Irene Manning, Lynn Overman, now deceased, provides some mildly effective comedy as an inebriated American correspondent. There is a fair amount of excitement caused by the battles between the Riffs and the French troops, and one is held in suspense by the manner in which Morgan continuously evades capture, keeping his identity a secret. In the development of the plot, Morgan, an American pianist, in Morocco, learns that a syndicate of German bankers were financing a railroad project designed to link a North African city with Dakar. Victor Francen, a powerful Moroccan, who had the contract to supply workmen for the project, was bribing Bruce Cabot, a French Colonel, to smoke the Riff tribesmen out of the hills and to force them to toil as slaves on the hot desert. Cabot, however, was unaware that Francen was backed by German interests. Morgan becomes the secret leader of the Riffs, and constantly harrasses their captors by raiding the desert camps and freeing the enslaved men. Prodded by Francen, Cabot and his soldiers carry on a futile search for the Riffs' mysterious leader, but Morgan, plying his trade as a pianist, manages to deceive them. Meanwhile both Cabot and Morgan fall in love with Irene Manning, French singer in a cafe. To lure Cabot and his troops into a trap, Morgan kidnaps Irene and reveals his identity to her. She understands his motives and falls in love with him. Irene, through an unwitting remark, reveals Morgan's secret to Cabot. Confronted by Cabot, Morgan tries to convince him that by serving Francen's interests he is really an unwitting tool of the Nazis. Together they go to Francen's palace and discover conclusive proof of Morgan's claims. Convinced, Cabot intercedes with his government and restores all rights and liberties to the Riff tribes. The story is based on the play by Lawrence Schwab, Otto Harbach, Oscar Hammerstein 2nd, Sigmund Romberg and Frank Mandel. Robert Buckner produced it, and Robert Florey directed it. The cast includes Gene Lockhart, Faye Emerson, Jack LaRue, Felix Basch and many others. Morally suitable for all.