We officially love Nancy Drew, and last night's movie was the third in the series, "Nancy Drew, Trouble Shooter" (1939). In this one, Nancy's Dad (John Litel) is asked by a friend to defend him on a murder charge. The friend - a rural gent named "Matt" (Aldrich Bowker) - is accused of killing his farm neighbor over a what the Sheriff thinks was a land dispute. When Mr. Drew gets the telegram, he asks his maid "Effie" (Renie Riano) not to mention the case to Nancy "because she'll do everything in her power to get involved. Instead, just tell her we're going to the country on vacation." A lot of hijinx is then expended on Effie's aversion to country life (bugs and snakes! poison ivy!), and when they arrive at Matt's house, there's a lengthy set piece with Nancy trying to cook dinner on an old-fashioned wood stove, with predictable results.
Dad has a love interest this time, in the form of "Edna Gregory" (Charlotte Wynters), a pretty neighbor of Matt's, who also serves as an object for Nancy's resentment because Nancy wants Dad's attention all to herself; she shows it with with miffed consternation. Willie Best plays the Black handyman "Apollo", as only Willie Best can. He tries to inform Dad about the "haints" in the barn. "Oh....you mean ghosts," says Dad. Then Nancy chimes in: "Oh, c'mon, Apollo. You don't believe in ghosts, do you?" But Apollo's right; they're in there. At the twenty minute mark, Ted Nickerson shows up as "Frankie", Nancy's reluctant but perpetual sidekick. Frankie just so happens to be out in the country, too, building a boat he plans to launch in the lake. Or he was going to launch it, before getting sidetracked by Nancy's need for an assistant in her murder investigation. Frankie rues the day she arrived, and Dad is mad at Effie for spilling the beans about the murder, but Effie pleads no contest: "You know I can't match wits with your daughter."
Dad gets Matt out of jail on a corpus delicti and habeas corpus, because the Sheriff has never found the victim's body. But then Nancy discovers a rare tropical plant in Matt's field, and asks Apollo to dig it up for her. "It's native to New Zealand,", she mentions, "What's it doing here?" When Apollo digs it up, he discovers the body of the murdalised farmer, and Matt is arrested all over again. Now Nancy's investigation begins in earnest. She thinks the exotic plant must be a clue, and learns about a retail greenhouse nearby that sells rare plant seeds. She and Frankie quiz the owner, who says he has no such plant or seed, but his catalogue and nursery show otherwise. He and his horticulturist act suspicious when Nancy and Frankie leave, and you start wondering if they are the murderers.
Since Nancy is a crack detective, I thought we were gonna get thrown a curveball, and that the culprit would be someone entirely unexpected. I won't reveal if that happens or not, but the investigation this time takes a back seat to the comedy, which verges on screwball at times. The energy with which the whole thing is presented makes this maybe the best Nancy Drew yet. From the moment the movie starts, Bonita Granville is in high gear, running into the house from her car: "Dad! I won second prize in the flower contest! Ialmostwonfirstprizebutthenanothergirlentereda...." She talks so fast her words run together, and Dad listens semi-patiently because daughters rule Dads. Nancy drives like a wild woman, though fences, into other cars and trees. She's a human tornado. Poor Frankie always ends up as collateral damage in her wake. Still, you get the feeling he's glad she asked for his help yet again, even as he's trapped in a burning building. Sleuthing with Nancy is never boring, and you have to be on the ball to write a script that stays one step ahead of the constantly changing action. Two Big Thumbs Up, Two Huge for the energy, and three cheers for Nancy Drew movies. The picture is razor sharp. ////
The previous night's flick was a pre-Code cheapo called "The Murder in the Museum"(1934), except it takes place at a carnival, not a museum. The sideshow is about what you'd expect. They've got a woman who's "all head, no body". They've got half-naked dancers, a mind reader, a knife thrower, a "Mexican Revolutionary," they've got an artist without arms who draws with his feet. The cops are visiting again, making sure there's no opium being sold, and that the dancers have at least some clothes on. One ticket buyer wants his money back for exactly that reason. Then, as the police are talking to the carnival owner, a shot rings out; the city councilman's been killed. Now it's learned that he led the charge to run the sideshow out of town. So it's a question of whodunit, but the suspects aren't your typical Ten Little Indians. The councilman's daughter teams up with the cops to find his killer, with help from the mind reader "Professor Mysto" (Henry Walthall). He says the killer is "the Mexican." He'd probably never get away with saying that nowdays.
The movie is more notable for its context than its content, because the sideshow appears to be the real thing. Several scenes feature extended exotic dancing, and Professor Mysto also performs some good magic tricks. I didn't find the plot as compelling as many of the commentators on IMDB, but I still give the movie Two Big Thumbs as a curio. It's a definite recommendation and the picture is very good. ////
And that's all I know. I'm listening to a lot of Van Der Graaf Generator of late (and Peter Hammill solo, too). My blogging music tonight was "Godbluff", my late night is Handel's Ptolemy, King of Egypt opera. I trust your week is off to a good start, and I send you Tons of Love as always.
xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
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