Brenda Starr, Reporter (1945) ch03 – Taken for a Ride

Taken for a Ride’s opening cliffhanger resolution isn’t particularly exciting–in fact, giving so much information about what’s going on outside the situation to resolve the cliffhanger makes it all procedural, instead of suspenseful–but it still almost leads to a good shootout.

Joan Woodbury and Syd Saylor (who can be dashing and heroic when he needs to be, which is one of Brenda Starr’s best developments) are pinned down inside a warehouse. Gangsters are shooting at them. What can they do? Well, Woodbury pulls a snubnosed revolver and shoots back.

It’d be awesome if the action didn’t cut to cops Kane Richmond and Joe Devlin trying to get into the warehouse.

Wasted potential, though Saylor does get an amusing moment.

The rest of Taken for a Ride has Woodbury and Richmond–independently–trying to figure out how singer Cay Forester fits into the gangsters’ plot. It comes right after Richmond condescends to Woodbury about her job performance as a reporter; even though Richmond is the romantic lead, he’s an unlikable jackass.

All of the audio for the second half of Ride is lost. So, the exact details of the plot are a tad mysterious. The cliffhanger setup in Ride is pretty cool; it’s maybe the first time Charles Henkel Jr.’s editing impresses.

The chapter also brings in Lottie Harrison as Woodbury’s cousin and roommate. She does better than William ‘Billy’ Benedict’s annoying newsboy. Though it’s probably not Benedict’s fault as much as director Fox’s or the screenwriters’.

Taken for a Ride keeps Brenda Starr moving well enough; the chapter never veers off track. Opening with Benedict’s tediously acted scene ends up helping it. Everything else is a step up.

Brenda Starr, Reporter (1945) ch02 – The Blazing Trap

The Blazing Trap opens with a lengthy lead-in to the cliffhanger resolve. Even though the resolve is pretty easy, it’s kind of cool how much context Brenda Starr gives its resolution. It doesn’t feel like a quick wrap up, it feels like a part of the story.

After it’s over, though, the chapter speeds headfirst into a boring finish. Joan Woodbury, once again, foolishly investigates something without letting the cops know. Last time there were tragic consequences. Who knows what will happen this time. Assuming Brenda Starr doesn’t die in the second chapter.

But that boring finish isn’t just because there’s a weak cliffhanger. It’s everything in the second half of the chapter. The first half hinges on Syd Saylor being funny as Woodbury’s meandering photographer. It doesn’t not work, but at least Blazing is trying.

Then the next scene, when Woodbury and Saylor check in with newspaper editor Frank Jaquet, has some snappy dialogue. It seems like Blazing might be headed somewhere. Somewhere good, not somewhere boring.

Woodbury interviews a night club singer (Cay Forester), who has some connection to the unseen villain–The Big Boss. Then Woodbury gets in trouble investigating a lead. Shouldn’t be boring, somehow manages to be boring.

Woodbury’s fine, she just isn’t compelling enough to save the serial.

Brenda Starr, Reporter (1945) ch01 – Hot News!

Brenda Starr, Reporter is all action. Sure, there’s some scenes of lead Joan Woodbury sitting at her desk, but she’s just waiting to hear about more action.

The chapter starts with a building on fire. Woodbury and her photographer, Syd Saylor, drive out from the newspaper office, racing to get there faster than the cops. The cops are Kane Richmond and Joe Devlin. Richmond’s the good-looking one and Woodbury’s de facto love interest. Devlin’s the dopey comic relief. He and Saylor–Woodbury’s dopey comic relief–have a bet going on who gets to crime scenes faster, reporters or cops. It leads to some silliness around the burning building, which ought to be terrifying but isn’t.

Ande Lamb and George H. Plympton’s script has thin exposition and broad humor. About half the runtime is spent on mid-level villain George Meeker–there’s an unseen, unknown “Big Boss” who speaks to his thugs in paternal, private radio addresses. Woodbury and Richmond get the other half, with a little more time going to Woodbury.

Jack Ingram plays one of Meeker’s thugs. He doesn’t like Woodbury snooping.

Hot News moves pretty well. Woodbury keeps a straight-face through Saylor’s nonsense, which doesn’t work for the humor but does make Woodbury more sympathetic.

It’s okay. Nothing particularly great (or even good), but nothing concerning either.

Fox’s direction could be a bit more lively, however. And Ira H. Morgan’s photography is a bore.

Murder on a Honeymoon (1935, Lloyd Corrigan)

Murder on a Honeymoon is a tepid outing for Edna May Oliver and James Gleason’s detecting duo. It’s the third in the series and, while Oliver and Gleason are back, it’s clear some of the magic was behind the camera. Robert Benchley and Seton I. Miller’s script is a little too nice (in addition to being boring) and Lloyd Corrigan’s direction lacks any inspiration.

Honeymoon takes place on Catalina, which–from the film–seems to be the most boring vacation spot in the world. The only time the murder investigation overlaps with vacation activities is in a closed casino, which is one of the film’s better sequences.

But the script’s the real problem. It ignores suspects, forgets the supporting cast and makes Gleason way too nice to Oliver. Their bickering originally had a give and take–in Honeymoon, Gleason pulls his punches. The only one being really mean to Oliver is the film’s confirmed villain.

Even the supporting cast is a little weak. None of them have story arcs–except Lola Lane–and she’s absent for most of her own arc. Lane isn’t in the picture long enough to make an impression, but DeWitt Jennings is rather weak and Spencer Charters’s incompetent local police chief needs work. It might not be Charters’s fault, since the script never lets Oliver cut into him deep enough.

There are some amusing moments with Arthur Hoyt’s unprofessional medical examiner though.

The murderer’s identity’s a surprise, but a surprise doesn’t make up for the rest.

Remember Last Night? (1935, James Whale)

I wish I knew if Remember Last Night? is supposed to be a knock-off of The Thin Man or if it’s just a highly coincidental release, coming a year later, with a similarly intoxicated, ritzy couple solving crimes as they get more intoxicated (Robert Young and Constance Cummings play the couple in this film). Remember Last Night? is based on a novel, which suggests the latter.

The film’s about a bunch of facile rich party animals getting involved with murder–imagine “Sex and the City” with couples, set in the thirties, with murder investigation thrown in.

It’s a nearly unbearable film. While completely unsuited for comedy, Whale does have some amazing crane shots, just beautiful work, but then he’s got these terrible inserts and all of his close-ups look somewhat off. His direction of the actors is also problematic, but some of those failures might just be the script.

The script’s entirely contrived–when they need a detective, they call one (Edward Arnold), who isn’t supposed to be investigating, mind you, just helping them out. The same goes for a psychic (Gustav von Seyffertitz). It’s never explained why socialite alcoholic Young knows detective Arnold.

The acting’s not bad. Young has his moments and Cummings is excellent. Sally Eilers, Robert Armstrong and Reginald Denny are all strong, though the script gives out on them all eventually (well, except Armstrong, only because he’s barely in it).

The film misuses Edward Brophy, which I hadn’t believed possible before seeing this one.