Tonight's Movie: The Gracie Allen Murder Case (1939) - A Kino Lorber Blu-ray Review

The unique comedic mystery THE GRACIE ALLEN MURDER CASE (1939) has just been released on Blu-ray by Kino Lorber Studio Classics.

Gracie plays her patented dimwitted persona as she becomes mixed up in a murder mystery involving Bill (Kent Taylor), who's employed at a perfume company owned by Gracie's Uncle Ambrose (Jed Prouty).

Gracie accidentally implicates Bill as the killer of a gangster (Lee Moore), and we're off to the races.

The great detective Philo Vance (Warren William) is called in to investigate the case, managing to eventually set matters right, no thanks to Gracie.

A little of Gracie goes a long way, with the character front and center for the majority of the movie's 78 minutes. Her imbecilic persona becomes as exasperating for the audience as she is for the other movie characters. That said, she also has some genuinely funny moments, so the movie is kind of a mixed bag in that regard.

The production is buoyed by its supporting cast. William returns to a role he played in THE DRAGON MURDER CASE (1934) and serves as a serious counterweight to Gracie's lightheaded nature. Donald MacBride plays Vance's friend, District Attorney Markham.

In addition to favorites Kent Taylor and Ellen Drew, who admittedly don't get to do much, the supporting cast is packed with familiar faces including Jerome Cowan, Richard Denning, William Demarest, Irving Bacon, Lillian Yarbo, James Flavin, and H.B. Warner.

Spending time with the cast is what sold the movie for me; while I wouldn't revisit this film with great frequency due to Gracie being a wearing presence, I would nonetheless watch it again thanks to all the great faces surrounding her.

The screenplay by Nat Perrin and two uncredited writers was based on a story by S.S. Van Dine. The movie was directed by Alfred E. Green and filmed in black and white by Charles Lang.

Print and sound quality are excellent. Disc extras consist of a commentary track by Bernie Prokop, plus a gallery of half a dozen trailers for other films available from Kino Lorber.

Thanks to Kino Lorber for providing a review copy of this Blu-ray.

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