Miss Pinkerton

Dir. Lloyd Bacon

66 Minutes

USA

1932

Starring: Joan Blonde, George Brent, Ruth Hall, John Wray, Elizabeth Patterson, C. Henry Gordon, Holmes Herbert

***/*****

Joan Blondell starring pre-code quickie about a nurse with a thirst for some excitement who finds herself as the eyes for a police detective (George Brent) following a murder in a creepy mansion. Blondell brings her usual energy and quick wit to the mix, and director Lloyd Bacon seems to have a little fun with the space of the house, sometimes drifting stylistically towards creepy shadows and camera motions of the "old dark house" genre. The mystery itself is fairly rote and remains secondary to the films other virtues, but at barely an hour long in length everything mostly moves at a consistent clip with a small "meta' reference near the end for good measure ("You've arrested nearly everyone in this cast except for me!") Ultimately not inventing any wheels, but a relaxed and entertaining example of what First National churned out at the time.

January 3rd, 2020