Private Detective 62

6/10/19331h 6m

Theatrical Release (US)

~ It's a pleasure to have your home wrecked by a man like him. ~

Overview:

A former government agent in France, who has failed at an assignment and been disavowed, is deported back to the USA, where he can only find work at a low-rent detective agency. He soon gets involved with a woman with ties to a crooked gambling club owner, who is a client of his agency.

Director:

Michael Curtiz

Status:

Released

Language:

English

Buget:

$0.00

Revenue:

$0.00

Key words:

drug addiction
murder
private detective
gambler
pre-code
detective agency
business partner
racket
club owner

Cast

William Powell

~ as ~

Donald Free

Margaret Lindsay

~ as ~

Janet Reynolds

Arthur Hohl

~ as ~

Dan Hogan

Ruth Donnelly

~ as ~

Amy Moran

Gordon Westcott

~ as ~

Tony Bandor

Natalie Moorhead

~ as ~

Helen Burns

James Bell

~ as ~

Whitey

Hobart Cavanaugh

~ as ~

Harcourt S. Burns

Irving Bacon

~ as ~

Cab Driver

Arthur Byron

~ as ~

Tracey (Uncredited)

View full cast & crew

Reviews (1)

CinemaSerf
Written 2 year(s) ago
6
They used to say that in the end, Samuel Goldwyn couldn't get arrested in Hollywood. Well the same is true here for "Donald Free" (William Powell). His government career went down in flames and now he can't get a job for love nor money. Until, that is, he alights on the dodgy "Peerless" detective agency where he is charged with a frame-up of "Janet" (Margaret Lindsay) who has fallen foul of a gambler who is the man behind the cheques at his new employer. What nobody (except the audience, that is) predicts though, is that the two will begin to fall for each other and his task becomes not only more difficult, but downright perilous. It's quite a fun, and quirkily plotted, thriller this with a degree of chemistry on screen and just enough wriggle-room with the story to keep it interesting for an hour. By now the studio was quite adept at eking out the budget and the aesthetic of the film works quite well too, before a lively ending that offers no surprises but entertains well enough for a standard, afternoon B-feature.