dougdoepke That opening scene with the impish little boy writing punishment sentences on the blackboard is a charming hoot. The whole time he's muttering he will NOT be a good boy despite what he's writing. Monitoring him, teacher Anne (Angel) looks dowdy, I guess like a school teacher's supposed to look. She's been leading a respectable but repressed life, content it appears with the romantic margins. Then, one day, she drops her homely eye-lasses and goes shopping-- new dresses, stylish hats, flattering cosmetics-- and the make-over is complete. The conversion from gray moth to striking butterfly is also complete. But does she know what comes with the good looks that catch a man's eye. From now on it's a pack of trouble.Lively little madcap from Universal, thanks to the two leads, Angel and King. Their chemistry works as they try to outwit gang of crooks whose corpse-bearing car they've unfortunately stolen. Now both the crooks and cops are after them. Maybe Anne was better off making little boys write on blackboards. But then this is Hollywood and we know how such antics end, especially for such an attractive twosome. All in all, it's a fun way to spend an hour, maybe not Hepburn and Grant, but with their own B-movie brand of charm.

JohnHowardReid This movie has a number of things going for it, not the least of which is the fact that while it is not stingy on production values, it runs less than an hour. It's also one of a mere half-dozen features directed by super-prolific comedy shorts director, Al Christie. The ingratiating star, Heather Angel, acquits herself well, and there's no doubting the sincerity of a large support cast including John "Dusty" King, Constance Collier, Clem Bevans and Walter Catlett. Based on a reasonably amusing story by Dalton Trumbo, the screenplay certainly strains credulity, but it has enough amusing twists to keep us on our toes, and it never runs out of puff. Admittedly, Heather Angel makes an ideal distraction, but the other players prop up the screenplay admirably too. And for all its lack of pretentiousness, the thin story also breezes along at a praiseworthy pace, despite a plot housed with plentiful people, plus a playfully pleasant precociousness that makes DVD viewing a fervent pleasure.

scootmandutoo Because of the easygoing and likable acting of the 3 stars (Angel, King and Collier), you likely will find the 1 hour spent goes by rather quickly.However, this movie is riddled with disbelief. Outside of 1 brief scene where Heather Angel initially sprints from the car, neither her nor John King break a sweat over the dead man they are driving around.And, why Angel never just abandons the car in the first place (we later learn why King doesn't) is just one of the film's many idiocies.The chase scenes are mostly interesting for their blatant use of rear projection. The cops on police choppers are hilariously unrealistic.Yet, despite the entire lack of believability, or any sense of tension, this film was a fun little period piece. There is a good free copy on YouTube and elsewhere online.

mstomaso Part film noir, part mystery, part thriller, part adventure and all comic romance, Half a Sinner is a 1940 charmer which is worth seeing. Fred Jackson (screenwriter) and Al Christie (Director/Producer) teamed up in 1940 to bring a clever Dalton Trumbo story about a schoolteacher on the run to the screen. Both Jackson and Christie had been successfully making films since 1912 - including a great deal of B and B+ comedies such as 1937's Wells Fargo. Christie's experience shows in this well-directed and well-shot melange of genres, but unfortunately, Jackson appears to have had some difficulty working with Trumbo's material. At home in comedy, Jackson appears to have grafted most of the film's humorous elements onto characters Larry Cameron (John King) and Mrs Breckeridge (Constance Collier). Collier (Rope, The Perils of Penelope) is as superb as usual, but King is monotonous and awkward. The plot, and Angel's charismatic performance and likable character are what make this film fun and worth a look.Miss Gladden is a mid-twenties school teacher who fears becoming an old maid. Her solution to this is to go seek adventure in the local park. Doesn't sound promising, but her good looks attract the unwanted attention of a thug. Panicking, Miss Gladden (Angel) drives off in the thug's sedan - which, of course, had been previously stolen and has a body rolled up in a rug in the backseat. Miss Gladden is oblivious about all of this. Pursued doggedly by a motorcycle cop and some fairly inept gangsters, Miss Gladden eventually picks up a man (King) in the street who claims car trouble. Car trouble indeed. Noticing the body, Larry Cameron remarks that he is also in the game. What game? Well, that becomes the mystery which makes the movie worth watching so you won't get it out of me. Many viewers will figure it out about halfway through, and most will continue watching anyway just to see how the truth is eventually revealed. Halfway a Sinner is a fun little romp. Suspension of disbelief is most definitely required - but it is facilitated by Heather Angel's superb performance, strong Trumbo storyline, and the good humor (not laugh-out- loud comedy) of the film.