The Lone Wolf Strikes - 1940 - USA

The Lone Wolf Strikes - 1940 - 6/10 

 
Older banker, younger female.  He loans her a prized pearl necklace.
What she returns is an excellent fake.  After he complains – and dies – Michael Lanyard steps in.
Lanyard, AKA the Lone Wolf.  Add to the confidence tricksters, a rougher gang biding its time.
Brisk B-film moves rapidly, with enough changes to offset plot holes.
William, as ever, exudes charm and grace, without his sneering, Pre-Code corruption.

Pride And Prejudice - 1940 - USA

Pride And Prejudice - 1940 - 6/10

 
Worth a watch for fans of lavish, old Hollywood adaptation of Jane Austen.
Two rich gentleman arrive in the countryside, eligible bachelors both.
Did I mention rich?
In no time, Mrs Bennet maneuvers to land a son-in-law for her daughter.
At barely two hours, this version has been cut to the bone, and hurries along.
Greer Garson, in her mid-thirties, looks too old, and resembles Miss Muffet.
Olivier, however, is ideal.  Reserved, aloof, coldly elegant.
One wonders if David Rintoul studied his Darcy for the 1980 series.

Door With Seven Locks, The - 1940 - UK

The Door With Seven Locks - 1940 - 6/10

 
The dying lord is to be buried in the family vault – with his jewels.
A faithful friend is entrusted with the seven keys.
Ten years later, a distant relative is summoned, a retired detective takes an interest.
While the seven keys are, of course, gone!
Edgar Wallace chamber thriller dashes from the gate and rarely slows down.
Duplicitous servants, hidden panels, death pact, even a monkey.
Leslie Banks, ever flamboyant, with Lillie Palmer, as the distant heir.

Santa Fe Trail - 1940 - USA

Santa Fe Trail - 1940 - 6/10

 
New West Point graduates, and best friends, Jeb Stuart and George Custer, are assigned the Kansas Territory.
Not yet a state, Kansas, then known as Bleeding Kansas, is where John Brown sets fire to hearts and homes.
Rousing action film is peppered with more historical names: Jefferson Davis, Robert E Lee, James Longstreet, Phil Sheridan …
Inaccuracies abound.  Characters actually graduated in different class years, nor were most friends.
Don’t get me going about the use of revolvers during the musket era.
Those not into history should enjoy; there is plenty of firepower.
Raymond Massey dominates as the fiery abolitionist, John Brown.

Dr. Cyclops - 1940 - USA

Dr. Cyclops - 1940 - 6/10

 
Decades ahead of his time, the “mad” doctor decides humankind is bad for the planet.
His solution?  Shrink everyone.  Thus, our impact on the planet and resources will be diminished.
Per his request, other scientists arrive to confirm his findings, and end up … you guessed it.
Despite the potential, the result is a silly B-flick, saddled with an uninspired script.
Implications ignored, this becomes a survival narrative.
Early 3 color release boosts the curiosity factor.

The Case Of The Frightened Lady - 1940 - UK

The Case Of The Frightened Lady - 1940 - 6/10

 
Similar to the family Usher, the Lebanon family bloodline has run thin.
Consequently, Lady Lebanon orders her son to marry his cousin.
Before the murders begin.
Creaky whodunit, based on an Edgar Wallace novel, boasts an absolutely gorgeous, gloomy manor.
Stone in and out, vast ceilings, rooms lit by candlelight or fireplace.
Let’s not forget surly servants, and the toffy son who would rather pound the piano than woo his cute cousin.
This plays out like an early talkie, although fans of Wallace should enjoy, as will cozy fans.
If you are lucky enough, this still reps as a popular theatre play.

The Green Archer - 1940 - USA

The Green Archer - 1940 - 6/10

Fairly early Columbia serial.  Younger brother is convicted of crime and sent to the slammer.
Meanwhile, the older brother, the cunning, sly one, inherits large manor home from where he spins his web of crime.
The huge estate has subterranean tunnels, trap doors, secret rooms, intercom, giant killer dogs (Great Danes), a car elevator (with full time elevator operator), even an underground garage!
The villainous brother masterminds a platoon of thugs and robbers.  Local police are hapless.
Squared off against evil doers is the masked ghost of the house - the Green Archer!
And an insurance agent named Spike!
Much of this serial is ridiculous and awful in a delightful way.
The crime lord is a preening fool.  He struts, gloats, brags about his big ole brain, then wails like Baby Huey when he loses a round.  Fortunately, his feeble brained flunkies more often than not bail him out.

 
Female characters squeak when startled and stand still during fistfights, watching or wringing their hands.  One memorable scene, she keeps straightening her hair while Spike gets his ass kicked.  Guess the day was windy.
The Green Archer communicates by shooting arrows with notes into stuffed furniture.  I started wondering if he did re-upholstery work during his day job.
Quality of chapter cliffhangers?  This serial has more cheats than a trailer park.
Caution - Children in 1940 were less shielded than those of today, as this serial is filled with killings.

The Mad Doctor - 1940 - USA

The Mad Doctor - 1940 - 5/10

Dull mystery / thriller, not completely without interest.
After psychiatrist’s ill bride tires of being sick and expires, he relocates to the big city.
Where he quickly meets a suicidal female with a tendency to stand on the outside ledge of tall buildings.
Luckily for her, he’s a psychiatrist.  Fortunately for him, she’s rich.  An heiress.
Predictable, slow in stretches, with a title that telegraphs any plot twists.

 
Ole Basil Rathbone (the shrink) and Martin Kosleck (chauffeur / sidekick) maintain a curious, eye raising relationship throughout.
Apparently the men live together and share a past studded with troublesome secrets.
They bicker, scheme, and engage in dark business together.
How this escaped Production Code censors is beyond me.

You’ll Find Out - 1940 - USA

You’ll Find Out - 1940 - 5/10

 
Wasted opportunity in this musical / comedy / horror / mystery mishmash.
Old dark mansion, perched on a cliff over a pounding surf, under thunder and lightning skies, provide the setting for young girl’s 21st birthday party.
Kay Kyser and his Kollege Of Musical Knowledge provide the entertainment, and is also, sadly, the chief focus of the film.
Kyser and bandmates seem too old for their slapstick and silly antics.  Musical numbers are unmemorable.
Plot creeps along, the humor is flat out corny.
Rather young and earnest Dennis O'Keefe (future Noir stalwart) is underused.
The three main villains, though, really shine.  They steal every single scene, and effortlessly ooze the sinister, the conniving, the scheming.

No ifs - ands - or buts - the film ought to have been about this trio of old pros.

Night Train To Munich - 1940 - UK

Night Train To Munich - 1940 - 6/10

 
Brisk paced, cozy, espionage spy thriller.
Czech inventor of new armor plating for steel flees to England once Nazis invade Czechoslovakia.
By clever means, the Nazis hijack him back and Rex Harrison volunteers to return the favor.
Same writers for Hitchcock’s The Lady Vanishes, the same setting - a train, leading lady Margaret Lockwood, as well as old boy toffs, Caldicott and Charters.

 
Breezy, cat ‘n mouse chase, with Nazis portrayed as easily duped, lightweight villains.
As World War II progressed, their roles would darken considerably.

Stranger On The Third Floor - 1940 - USA

Stranger On The Third Floor - 1940 - 6/10

 
Early, early Film Noir.  Perhaps not quite Noir enough for many, but this was definitely one of the stylized bridges between Expressionism and Film Noir.
Reporter’s testimony convicts a man (young Elisha Cook) of murder.
The reporter’s girlfriend feels he might have been innocent.
The reporter suffers twinges of doubt, especially after he sees Peter Lorre skulking in the shadows.
Brief whodunit B-picture from RKO, with ham handed leads, bolstered by an astounding dream sequence.
I had viewed bits of the dream montage in several documentaries, but never the full showcase.
Terrific use of light, shadows, angles.

Remember The Night - 1940 - USA

Remember The Night - 1940 - 7/10

 
Unfairly forgotten Christmas chestnut with Stanwyck and MacMurray before their classic Double Indemnity.
Female shoplifter hauled before jury right before Christmas.  Shrewd DA gets her trial postponed because he knows juries are more merciful during Yule.  Once he realizes the woman has no place to stay, no money, he feels guilty.
Until he realizes they both hail from the same state, then he offers her a ride back home.
Film, from a brilliant Preston Sturges script, runs cynical, funny, bitterly sad, sentimental.
Stanwyck and MacMurray display marvelous chemistry, shifting effortlessly between wary and hopeful.
Both are city souls, however, and dead honest with themselves.
The trip from city to country is the journey from calculating adulthood to innocent childhood.
The contrast between their childhood homes is heartbreaking.
The old homestead, a bygone world, seems already a fading memory here, as the States poised for war.
Sentimental, yes - but not icky.
Reinforces a personal hope that a good individual can redeem a borderline soul.

Mysterious Doctor Satan - 1940 - USA

Mysterious Doctor Satan - 1940 - 5/10

 
Vintage Republic serial.
The Copperhead tries to save the earth from Doctor Satan.
Satan intends to conquer the planet using robots that resemble and move like drunken trash cans.
Copperhead is secretly Bob Wayne (unknown if he was related to Bruce Wayne). No one else knows, even though he'll be Bob one second, then bound in as Copperhead, still wearing the same suit and tie.  His voice is not disguised, and Copperhead drives Bob's cars!
Most action is of the fisticuff variety.
Not the best, though I've sat through worse.

The Saint’s Double Trouble - 1940

The Saint’s Double Trouble - 1940 - 5/10

George Sanders plays the Saint, as well as, the Boss.
Good guy and villain.
Fast moving B-film of smuggling, mistaken identities and mummies!
Simon, pursued by police, feds and dimwitted henchmen, tries to solve a mystery and woo a fetching blonde.
Speaking of mummies, Bela Lugosi plays the Boss’s right hand man.
Empty headed, but fun.

Kampf um Norwegen: Feldzug 1940 - 1940

Kampf um Norwegen: Feldzug 1940 - 1940 - 6/10
AKA - Battle For Norway: 1940 campaign

Nazi propaganda overwhelms with details, grows tiresome.
Documentary shows invasion and conquest of Norway in 1940.
Animated campaign maps are helpful, also a wealth of images.
Every skirmish is mentioned with scant fighting footage.
As propaganda, this is not vitriolic hatred, but more the morale booster.
Why German is in the war with Norway (it’s the fault of the English).
The presentation struck me as dull until the last section, the conflicts around Narvik, where the Allies were giving the Kriegsmarine and Gebirgsjägers a hard time of it.
Goebbels, supposedly dissatisfied, mothballed this and it was considered lost until found in 2006.