Before Midnight (1933)

Perennial second-lead, Ralph Bellamy, has the star part in the 4-picture "Inspector Trent" series. The first of these Columbia "B" entries, Before Midnight (1933) is heavy on atmosphere but short on credibility. True, the plot presents some fascinating permutations of the usual mystery thrillers. I like the idea of the two principals switching their identities, but writer Robert Quigley is unable to come up with any reason at all for this startling plot development. Yes, a reason is certainly given at the time, but it is later revealed to be a lie! And that's not the only plot twist by far that's just simply left hanging. Nonetheless, Claude Gillingwater battles gamely against the script and right up to the end, almost succeeds in presenting a believable characterization. George Cooper (as Bellamy's offsider), Betty Blythe and William Jeffrey also excel. (Formerly available on a fair quality VintageFilmBuff DVD).

Ralph Bellamy stars as 'Inspector Trent'--a detective who is trying to solve a murder. However, his method of solving the case seems to be to let the murderer kill off all the other possible so that by the process of elimination he's found the killer! In the very first scene, a guy announces to Trent that he's about to be murdered--and he is! Then, the houseboy appears to be connected to the crime and he's stabbed in the back right before the very eyes of Trent!! At the end, when Bellamy discovers the killer, he deliberately gives the guy ample opportunity to kill himself--thus saving the tax payers from having to pay to incarcerate him!! This is all pretty funny, as the case is apparently being told to an up and coming cop who wants an advancement--and his boss tells him how Trent so masterfully solved the case as an example of great detective work!!! Thank God other 'great detectives' don't work this way!! Fortunately, despite this weird plot element, the solution to the crime is actually really cool and makes this B-mystery well worth seeing. Good acting, a genuinely interesting mystery and a relatively ineffectual detective make this one to watch. Plus, it's nice to see Bellamy in a film where he doesn't lose the girl in the end...which seemed to happen all too often through the 1930s and early 40s!

"Before Midnight" was done in 1933, before "The Thin Man," when the style of mysteries would become a little breezier, more stylish, and employ more humor. Ralph Bellamy stars here as Inspector Trent, out to solve a very complicated murder. It has that "dark and stormy night" feel to it, but it's done with a straightforward seriousness, without the good-natured laughter of someone like Warren William or the tipsiness of a William Powell. As Trent, Bellamy interrogates like a real cop: "You did it, didn't you!" The story, however, is very good.I'm always amazed to see Ralph Bellamy as a young man and realize what a long, huge career he had. His first film was in 1931 (stage from 1929), at the age of 27, and his last was "Pretty Woman" in 1990, one year before he died. Here he's a lead, but as someone else pointed out, he probably lacked the excitement of a true leading man and was soon relegated to supporting roles. As a stage actor and as an older man, he really thrived on stage, in film, and on television; besides doing "Tomorrow the World" and "State of the Union" on Broadway, he enjoyed a tremendous success as FDR in "Sunrise at Campobello" in 1959. "Before Midnight" will keep you interested. What it lacks in pace and style, it makes up for in story.

The film is told in flashback by a chief of police to a detective looking for a promotion. The Arnold case, he says is the sort of case that when solved warrants a promotion. Ralph Bellamy is Inspector Trent of the New York Detective Bureau. Called to Forest Lake and the Arnold residence, Trent is asked to look into a possible murder in the offing. It seems Arnold is a superstitious man and any time blood was found under the portrait on an ancestor the head of the house hold dies the next day. Time is running out. As Arnold shows Trent the second part of the superstition, a clock that stops a minute before the murder, the clock stops, a window bursts open and Arnold dies.A complicated and pre-code murder mystery this is almost a straight forward police procedural as we watch Trent try to solve the case. Bellamy plays Trent in a no nonsense hard boiled style that is atypical of mysteries of this sort. Of course there is no way to know whats going on since some of the goings on are so convoluted that you can't figure it out unless they tell you. Still its a good movie who's complication keep you interested. Certainly not a great film, it is a very good one that bears a second viewing just so you can see what you missed.Definitely worth seeing.6.5 out out of 10 rounded up to 7 out of 10 for IMDb purposes