One Frightened Night
One Frightened Night is a mildly interesting vintage movie from 1935. A group of relatives and business associates gather at the home of an elderly gentlemen who has decided to give away his fortune before an inheritance tax takes effect that night at midnight (Oh, for the good old days!).
Of course a long lost granddaughter shows up, it begins to thunder and lightning and folks begin to end up dead. One Frightened Night is a who done it mystery that does manage to keep you guessing until the end.
*** Mild Spoilers Ahead ***
The movie begins with creative credits involving a window shade and the arm of a man. The crusty, cantankerous and wealthy old man is played deliciously by Charley Grapewin who later turned up in The Wizard of Oz. He was the best part of the movie. Mary Carlisle was terrific in her role as one of two women claiming to be his long lost granddaughter and Regis Toomey was okay in his role as a playboy who needs to grow up.
The biggest drawback of One Frightened Night for me was that the overall story never completely eluded the feel of a poorly made B movie. At times the movie came to life due to the liveliness of some of its characters and then the poor production values intruded to detract from this movie.
Also of interest in the movie was the participation of Hedda Hopper who played a daughter of the wealthy man Jasper Whyte. She of course, went on to become a famous Hollywood gossip columnist, which would seem a good thing considering the hammy job of acting she delivered in this role. And then there is Wallace Ford, who was just okay in this movie and who was also underused. Christy Cabanne, the director, would use Wallace or Wally Ford again in his later movie, The Mummy's Hand, in which Wallace Ford gave a wonderful comedic performance in what was also a much better movie.
I rate One Frightened Night a 69 out of 100, or a D + +. I recommend it to only die hard fans of vintage movies. Marxi.
One Frightened Night is a mildly interesting vintage movie from 1935. A group of relatives and business associates gather at the home of an elderly gentlemen who has decided to give away his fortune before an inheritance tax takes effect that night at midnight (Oh, for the good old days!).
Of course a long lost granddaughter shows up, it begins to thunder and lightning and folks begin to end up dead. One Frightened Night is a who done it mystery that does manage to keep you guessing until the end.
*** Mild Spoilers Ahead ***
The movie begins with creative credits involving a window shade and the arm of a man. The crusty, cantankerous and wealthy old man is played deliciously by Charley Grapewin who later turned up in The Wizard of Oz. He was the best part of the movie. Mary Carlisle was terrific in her role as one of two women claiming to be his long lost granddaughter and Regis Toomey was okay in his role as a playboy who needs to grow up.
The biggest drawback of One Frightened Night for me was that the overall story never completely eluded the feel of a poorly made B movie. At times the movie came to life due to the liveliness of some of its characters and then the poor production values intruded to detract from this movie.
Also of interest in the movie was the participation of Hedda Hopper who played a daughter of the wealthy man Jasper Whyte. She of course, went on to become a famous Hollywood gossip columnist, which would seem a good thing considering the hammy job of acting she delivered in this role. And then there is Wallace Ford, who was just okay in this movie and who was also underused. Christy Cabanne, the director, would use Wallace or Wally Ford again in his later movie, The Mummy's Hand, in which Wallace Ford gave a wonderful comedic performance in what was also a much better movie.
I rate One Frightened Night a 69 out of 100, or a D + +. I recommend it to only die hard fans of vintage movies. Marxi.