GManfred Thoroughly enjoyed this one which was even better due to the stellar presence of William Powell. Apart from the fact that he adds immeasurably to any film he's in, this one has an especially good plot with no lulls in the narrative. Here he is part con man, part ladies man and part quick-witted private eye., just the type of part Powell excels in.The film sports an excellent director in Michael Curtiz (10 years before "Casablanca"), who gets a lot of mileage out of a supporting cast of proven Hollywood veterans. The script is first class and the screenplay has enough twists and surprises to satisfy even the most jaded movie-goer. I also added an extra star for William Powell's presence because he never disappoints.8/10 - the website no longer prints my start rating.

calvinnme William Powell's stay at Warner Brothers was a short one - only a couple of years - but he hit the bullseye in every picture he did there. This film is one of them. Here William Powell plays Donald Free, a secret agent of sorts who gets caught in France with stolen documents. The agency he works for has already told him that if he is caught all knowledge of his action will be disavowed, so he is unsurprised when that is exactly what happens. For some strange reason, the French take Donald all the way to New York harbor before deciding to transfer him to another ship and send him right back to France. The only reason for all of this inefficiency can be as a plot device for Donald to make an easy escape by jumping overboard and swimming to shore, which he does.Donald is now home and at liberty, but that doesn't get you far in 1933 Depression era America. Without references he is unable to get a job as a detective for any police department or obtain a private detective license. But after pounding the pavement with no luck for months, Donald manages to partner up with a private detective firm on its last legs. The partner has the license but not much talent at detecting or discretion, and Donald has the talent and no license. Ruth Donnelly plays the firm's secretary with mouth and moxy to spare. They're doing OK and then a well-known gangster bankrolls the firm and floods the office with business. When that gangster wants a favor in return - the discrediting of a beautiful customer that his gambling joint owes tens of thousands of dollars to because he doesn't have the money to pay her when she finally decides to cash in her chips - things begin to get really interesting. You'll probably figure out what's going on even before Powell's character solves all of the mysteries for you, but here as in most of the early 30's Warner Brothers films, most of the fun is the journey not the destination. Highly recommended.

Eventuallyequalsalways Don Free (William Powell) is a down-on-his-luck character in a depression-era big city that reluctantly joins a private detective agency to make a few bucks. Janet Reynolds (Margaret Lindsay) is a gal with a gift for roulette. Janet is either extremely lucky or using an undisclosed system, but however she is doing it, she has been on a winning streak for some time, letting the house hold her winnings so that she won't feel afraid to leave the casino at night. Her gambling gifts have run up a tally of over $50,000, a fortune in the Great Depression. She announces to the management of the casino that she intends to cash her chips so that she can head to Europe, a decision which imposes a deadline on the casino, especially since they don't want to part with that much cash. They devise an elaborate scheme when she agrees to meet with the payout master in his apartment. They know that she always carries a gun for protection, so they arrange for the weapon to be loaded with blanks, and when the payout master aggressively comes on to her, she shoots him in self-defense. She flees the apartment in terror, believing that she has committed a murder. The payout master calls his buddies on the telephone to let them know that she fell for the gag, when suddenly a hand eases through the curtains with a pistol in it, and the payout master is shot again, this time for real. Don Free (William Powell) has become involved with Janet (Margaret Lindsay) because of a case he has undertaken with his shady partner, hoping for a $10,000 fee, but unfortunately for the bad guys in this film, Don Free is an ethical detective, and he begins using his considerable intellect to defend Janet and get her out of the mess. Highly entertaining movie, even though you can see they are falling for each other, but Don and Janet are so appealing in their roles, you're pulling for them all the way through the picture. Masterfully directed by Michael Curtiz, this is one depression-era film which provides solid entertainment.

FrankiePaddo A good tight little film. The plot is obvious and creaky but William Powell is as stylish and suave, something he was to perfect later in the thin man series. The direction by Curtiz is well above average for the time ..... some beautiful angle shots, a nice fluid camera and I love the stair bit at the end .... in other words it is not as "stage bound" as a lot of other films from the time. The female lead, Margaret Lindsay,does a good job of looking pretty, and the great character actor Charles Lane turns up yet again. Its only about 67 minutes long and its a hoot .... pity the story isn't up to scratch (although they managed to sneak in a character called Whitey who is a hop head and at one stage is told to lay off the "snow") and it starts off slow otherwise it would be a mini classic ( like Powell's other film of about the same time "Jewell Robbery")