Jeanskynebu
the audience applauded
SparkMore
n my opinion it was a great movie with some interesting elements, even though having some plot holes and the ending probably was just too messy and crammed together, but still fun to watch and not your casual movie that is similar to all other ones.
Salubfoto
It's an amazing and heartbreaking story.
Walter Sloane
Mostly, the movie is committed to the value of a good time.
mark.waltz
Even though this is a predictable murder mystery with the victim (John T. Murray) seemingly deserving of becoming the victim, there's a lot to enjoy in this "B" programmer where the dialog makes an otherwise predictable storyline more enjoyable. The story is set up with the extremely jealous Murray making it clear to his wife (Dorothy Revier) that he is keeping a close watch on her, being totally aware of her infidelities, while the obviously embittered daughter (Claudia Dell) from his first marriage makes it clear that Revier is the prime suspect. There's also assorted business partners or rivals and Dell's fiancée (whom Murray disapproved of), all questioned by playboy private detective Reginald Denny and his wise-cracking "Girl Friday" (Patricia Farr).It's Farr's character who gets the bulk of the great dialog here, saying such great hard-boiled lines as "He can't work overtime. It interferes with his drinking". When she finds her employer/lover on the phone, she makes her own suspicions known by saying, "I know you didn't go into that booth to fix your girdle!". The wife/lover, daughter/fiancée characters are not sterotypically one-dimensional, giving reasonable motives for each of them as to why they might want to see Murray killed off. Not bad for a bottom of the barrel second feature where the camera moved in obviously very close onto the set to hide how cramped and small it really was.
classicsoncall
This is generally an 'in the middle' murder mystery and detective story, but considering it's mid-Thirties release it's got a few things going for it. What sells it is the banter between private detective Oliver Keith (Reginald Denny) and his attractive younger secretary Ella (Patricia Farr). It would have been more believable if the story kept any semblance of a relationship between the two out of it, as Denny was twice as old as his co-star in real life. But for the most part it worked, especially at the end when they smooched it up to allay viewer fears that Denny's character might have been a bit too abusive.For all intents and purposes, this could have been virtually any movie detective's show of the era - think Charlie Chan, Mister Wong, Bulldog Drummond, or the favorite on this board, Nick Charles. The story plants a number of red herrings surrounding the murder of antique dealer Albert Sayre (John T. Murray), the most obvious being his wife Julia (Dorothy Revier), and business associate Dyker (Jack Adair). The mystery is solved using your typical 'gather all the suspects in one room' approach, as the detective hero successfully conveys the solution of the case by eliminating the suspects one by one.The bigger mystery once the film is over is how they came up with the title. The term 'Lady in Scarlet' was mentioned early on in reference to a play Albert and Julia Sayre were discussing, she having favored one called 'The Frolic of '32'. However none of the principal female characters had any connection to the title by virtue of their attire. Be that as it may, it made me think of a similarly named Sherlock Holmes flick from a decade later called "The Woman in Green". In either case, who could tell when the picture's in black and white.
kidboots
Dorothy Revier never seemed to play anything other than flappers or (when they were passe) sultry femme fatales. Like co-star Claudia Dell, who in 1932 was supporting Tom Mix and Tony, Dorothy ended up supporting cowboy star Buck Jones (in "The Cowboy and the Kid" (1936)) but, also, like Claudia she was fun to have around.Albert Sayre, an antique dealer has a "trophy" wife, Julia (Dorothy Revier) who he insists on belittling at every opportunity. He suspects her of having an affair with Dr. Boyer (the unappealing Jameson Thomas) and is having her followed. Oliver Keats (debonair Reginald Denny) is a jaded detective, who is called in by Julia to investigate some shady characters she has noticed hanging around the house. Strangely enough she loves her husband and is worried about him - but when they arrive at the house they find he has been murdered.Alice (beautiful Claudia Dell) bursts in - she is convinced Julia is guilty - those in the audience familiar with Revier and her roles, probably thought she was too!!! Alice is married to Arthur Pennyward, Sayre's assistant and Sayre was her father. Sayre wasn't all he seemed - he also had a sideline in faking antiques and villainous looking Dyker (Jack Adair) is charged with his murder. Alice still isn't convinced that Julia is innocent and insists the will be read immediately. She is astounded when she realises that she is a joint inheritor with Julia. (She had had a fight with her father that day about her marriage and she thought she was disinherited.) That means she is also under suspicion.Everyone acts guilty, there are plenty of red herrings - when Julia and Boyer are having supper they phone Sayre but get no response - he is already dead!!! but it looks suspicious for them and it isn't explained. Patricia Farr - "courtesy of Fox Films" - plays Keat's sassy secretary who is kept busy dishing out quips and wisecracks.
pdutram
Who killed Albert J. Sayre? Another witty gem from Chesterfield. The dialog between sleuth Reginald Denny and his "secretary" Patricia Farr (who died at age 35) is every bit as good as that between Nick and Nora Charles in "The Thin Man" series. They certainly have an interesting relationship. Unfortunately, Ms Farr looks nothing like Myrna Loy. Sayre's daughter, Julia, however, is played by the very beautiful Dorothy Revier. Lew Kelly does his slightly dimwitted slow burn as Police Inspector Trainey. There are plenty of suspects. It's a well-kept secret who done it right up to the end. You'll just have to guess.