Mysterious Intruder (1946)

The screenplay of MYSTERIOUS INTRUDER is by Eric Taylor, based on his own story "Murder to Music," which appeared in the May 1936 BLACK MASK magazine. Taylor was not one of the first tier BLACK MASK writers, and his work for the magazine varies in quality, but this was a good one, one of his best. At around 16,000 words, the story could have been transcribed to a 61 minute feature with little expansion, and Taylor 's screenplay generally follows his story, but there are numerous small changes and some major ones, and they're all for the worse. A story that originally made perfect sense is often trashed for minor effects. In the story one knows from the beginning that the first girl is the detective's stooge. Actually showing the scene where she meets the old man means that, to fool the audience, she has to be afraid of Pontos (the only character name retained from the story), which makes no sense, since in fact he's her accomplice. A strong moment of surprise in the story is when the detective suddenly accuses the fake girl of trying to get him killed. Taylor has carefully set up the relationship between the two so that the revelation has some punch. In the film it seems like just another meaningless plot twist. In the story, he has his secretary call in and say she's the real girl so that the phony will be released. In the movie, he himself tells the newspapermen, so of course the cops know he sent the phony. The latter part of the film diverges significantly from the story. The denouement of the story is a great scene where the detective seems to be in a bad spot, with the bad guys having their guns on him, but he calmly points out that they have limited options unless they want to kill off "half of San Francisco." And a significant point in the story is that they're not really professional tough-guy crooks except for their hired man Pontos, so the detective's sudden action play after he has them unnerved makes sense. The stooge girl isn't killed, and there's no final scene back in shop, and of course the detective is not killed and the rightful owner, the authentic girl, gets the recordings. There doesn't seem to be much point to the film's end. Having the recordings broken seems a little hard on the character of the innocent young girl who deserves a break. There are other plot flaws in the end of the film. It ends with the ironic note of the cops thinking the detective was guilty. But he had made a call to the cops before he died, so presumably when they get back to headquarters they'll know that he was on the level. Also, at the beginning of the film Pontos apparently takes the recordings with him, yet at the end they are found in the store. And the old storekeeper hadn't seemed aware that he or the recordings were in danger, so why would he hide them inside a base drum? Aside from being more logical, the original story has a more authentic atmosphere, and Taylor adds a number of telling, small details not in the film.One doesn't necessarily expect a strong plot from a series film like this, but in this case the author based the screenplay on his own tightly plotted, excellent story. But instead of following the story, he restructured it so there are plot flaws and loose ends. Ah, well.The best thing about the film, and the biggest surprise, is that Richard Dix is perfect as the sleazy, not-so-smart, PI; who would have thought it? It's nice to see Charles Lane on screen for more than 30 seconds, quite a rarity. And Castle doesn't do such a bad job with the script that he's given; the film is reasonably atmospheric and the pace is good. If you like series programmers this film should satisfy.

**SPOILERS** Having elderly music store owner Edward Stillwell, Paul E. Burns, show up at what you would expect to be, from watching Sam Spade & Philip Marlow like 1940's private eye flicks, his rundown and barley lit office in what looks like swanky Sutton Place, check out the 59th Street Bridge outside the office window, private investigator Don Gale, Richard Dix, is anything but interested in taking up his case. Stillwell is willing to pay Gale all his life saving, $100.00, to track down and find 21 year-old Elora Lund, Pamela Blake, whom he hasn't seen or heard from for almost seven years. It's when Stillwell tells the very uninterested Gale that Miss. Lund is to inherit a large amount of money that her widowed mother, who had just passed away, left with him that Gale suddenly got interested in the case knowing that he'll, if he finds Miss. Lund, get a piece of it.The movie "Mysterious Intruder" is a lot like the "Maltese Falcon" with an unscrupulous private eye, like Sam Spade in the latter, breaking every rule in the book trying to get his hands on, instead of the legendary "Black Bird", a set of 1887 wax recordings cylinders of Swedish Nightingale Jenny Lind worth over $200,000.00. Gale is in fact a lot more unscrupulous then Sam Spade ever was by using people to trick poor old Mr. Stillwell into getting hold of the wax recordings without even giving them to their rightful owner Elora Lund!Gale using one, of many, of his lady friends hot blond Freda Hanson, Helen Mowery, to impersonate Miss. Lund to get a hold of the wax treasures has old man Stillwell murdered by the gorilla-like Harry Pontos (Mike Mazurki), who somehow got wind of what was going on, who ends up taking Freda hostage together with a package in Stillwell's store addressed to Elora Lund. When Gale get's to Stillwell's store finding him murdered and Freda missing has the news get out, via the police, that she's not really Miss. Lund. Pontos hearing this on his car radio, together with him finding nothing of value in the package that he stole from Stillwell's music store, lets Freda go as he heads home to his rooming house for a good nights sleep; it turned out to be the last good nights,or days, sleep that the big lug would ever have.Gale gets it from both sides in the movie, the police and those who work for him, with him getting the royal screwing from non other then Freda herself who's ***SPOILER ALERT*** working behind his back to get the wax cylinders off his hands and keep the $200,00.00 for both herself and her secret crime partner. Freda is later murdered by her unknown and unseen partner in a classic double-cross with the now clueless Gale being the number one suspect in her death.It's only later that Gale finally gets to the bottom of what's behind all this death and destruction but by then it's a bit to late for him to do anything about it. With him wanted by the police in Freda's, and possibly Mr. Stillwell's, murder Gale goes incognito, as a mummy-like looking bandaged crippled man, to the late Mr. Stillwell's music store knowing that the real killer, or killers, of Freda are there rummaging through the place trying to find the valuable wax recordings.The ending by far is the best part of the film "Mysterous Intruder" with everyone getting exactly what's coming to them including the on the lamb and under the covers, or bandages, Don Gale. One of the best of the Richard Dix "The Whistler" series of films and at the same time one of most complicated. Still "Mysterious Intruder" is more then worth watching a second time just to see the clues and subplots that you may have missed the first time around.

The improbable plot for this entry in "The Whistler" series has something to do with valuable cylindrical disc recordings of Swedish nightingale Jenny Lind, a double-crossed antique dealer, a femme fatale blonde who knows the recordings are worth $200,000, and some crooked thieves. RICHARD DIX is the gumshoe detective in the mold of Philip Marlowe, but his dialog isn't quite as sharp.Dix, of course, has to play fast and loose with the police on his trail and there are enough plot twists to keep any mystery fan mystified. Another factor in the plot is the femme fatale posing as someone else while scheming to get the money. As you can see, for a film that only runs one hour there's enough to keep you busy watching for the next development.The supporting cast includes BARTON MacLANE, PAMELA BLAKE, CHARLES LANE, REGIS TOOMEY and MIKE MAZURKI.Crisply written and directed, it's a good series entry.

Here's another fine entry in Columbia's noirish Whistler series, the fifth chronologically, and fourth directed by soon-to-be schlockmeister William Castle. Like the first in the series, Castle imbues the film with an especially sleazy atmosphere. The shadowy b&w photography, threatening background detail and desperate lowlife characters evince a cynical view of the urban world, and the writers obliquely hint at sordid relationships and motivations which simmer below the surface of the story. Series lead actor Richard Dix, normally emotively challenged, gives a rather eccentric interpretation of a venal, socially inept gumshoe seeking a big score, who is ironically given the opportunity for redemption. Buffs will certainly savor the parade of iconic supporting actors like Mike Mazurki and Charles Lane. Much better than one would expect from a mystery series, this picture reflects the seamy side of life usually glossed over by the Hollywood veneer.