Case While One Frightened Night is definitely not the kind of movie that you would call a classic or the kind that introduced new ideas or added new twists to the murder mystery genre, still it is a perfect little B movie in its own simple way.Really, there is nothing new here: we have the usual set of characters (the cute blonde, the dumb police guy, the grumpy but wise old man, the maid and a clumsy magician as comic-relief), the usual settings (old dark house, complete with hidden corridors) and a somewhat loose plot concerning the old guy's fortune that he plans to give away either to his relatives and employees OR to his long lost daughter. But still, everything works so fine, the characters are played out so well, the dialogues are excellently written and the film moves at such a fast pace that you will just have to sit back an enjoy the fun.The amusing title sequence already sets the mood for the spooky, but fun atmosphere and the story kicks into high gear when the aforementioned daughter show up... and not one, but two of them! And from that moment it just does not let down, we have great plot twists, witty dialogue, lots of action and even a masked killer, hiding in the shadows. If you like murder mysteries OR old dark house movies OR comedies OR just the typical, well made '30s B-movies then you simply can not go wrong with this little gem.

classicsoncall Most of the other reviewers on this board seemed to have fun with this one, and there's no reason not to. I was reminded of Vincent Price's 1959 flick "House on Haunted Hill", but a more likely comparison could be made to another Jack Haley vehicle from 1944 - "One Body Too Many". That one also included an eccentric millionaire, but the stakes are even higher here for heirs of Jasper Whyte's (Charley Grapewin) five million dollar fortune. I always get a kick out of the timing involved in these 1930's era flicks - if the 'true' heir shows up before midnight, she gets the whole bundle, while the five other poor saps who would have gotten a million each are left holding the proverbial empty bag.The best thing to do here is sit back and relax as the characters go through their motions, because in the best Charlie Chan tradition, the murderer isn't revealed until right at the very end. You can take a stab at it of course, but these pictures always managed to confound anyone who really tried to stay focused and keep track of all the characters. My money would have been on Arthur Proctor (Arthur Hohl), just because he was the creepiest suspect with the most to lose. Hedda Hopper probably would have named him in her gossip column.I can't say for sure if I'd call it a continuity goof, but keep an eye on the utility pole that gets hit by the falling tree during the thunderstorm. It shows up later in the picture good as new!For a mystery flick that comes in at just over an hour, you can't go wrong with "One Frightened Night". I'd put it right up there with my other suggestions for a dark and stormy night movie marathon, just like the ones mentioned in my opening comments. If that weren't enough, this movie is the only one I've seen so far that contains the word 'prestidigitator', and that's got to be worth a bonus point!

cameron-kills-it "One Frightened Night" is the story of an old man who invites his relatives to come to dinner and discuss his will. He tells them that if his granddaughter is found, she will get all of his money, but if she is not, he will divide it amongst the guests. Well, the granddaughter arrives in the nick of time, however, then another young woman shows up claiming to be the granddaughter. When the first young woman is found dead in her bedroom, a classic murder mystery ensues. This is one of the less known murder-mysteries of the 30's, but it is still very good. The plot has twist and turns and interesting characters that will keep you entertained. If you happen to come across this one, I highly recommend this obscure little whodunit gem! Not Rated, but should be suitable for people 10 years old and upGrade: B+

Hitchcoc As Old Dark House movies go, it's not bad. It has the intriguing plot of having a group of no goods, needing money, having it given to them by the old rich man, and then having it plucked away. A murder is committed and then all the fun starts. There are secret closets and passages. There are dumb policemen and their partners. There are suspects all over the place. There's the guy who was Dorothy's uncle in "The Wizard of Oz." We never know who to suspect. I have to admit that I felt sorry for some of the people who were going to get the money and then were aced out by a young woman, the granddaughter of the old man. I felt the housekeeper got a raw deal since she is treated pretty shabbily throughout. Even when we find out who did it, it's a little disappointing. The fun was "not" knowing. Nevertheless, there's lots of action and enough humor to make it fun. It's better than most of its ilk.