Marsha Hunt is the best thing about this low budget crime drama! Mongram studios like other low budget poverty row studios tried to compete with the majors by adding more action, sex or violence where they couldn't afford talent. And this story has more than your average plot twists... In this newspaper drama, a young man's father, a prominent newspaper publisher is violently murdered by famous gangsters. The young man uses the power of his newly inherited press to get revenge upon the killers by exposing them. Unfortunately, the young man's schemes go awry when he learns the identity of the trigger man. Plot devices include two sets of fathers, two signed confessions that gets stolen out of two safes, by two safe crackers!
7 Reviews
Reporter as crime fighter, again
csteidler30 April 2011
A lot of plot for 62 minutes in this fast paced little entry in the "newspaper vs. mob" genre. Various characters on both sides of the law harbor secret (and not-so-secret) motives, hidden relationships, and the good old-fashioned grudges that D.A.s, gangsters, and newspaper reporters bounce back and forth among themselves. Along with all that are the two women in the story--fiancée and mother, each with her own concerns.
At the center of it all, Warren Hull is not bad in the title role, though perhaps the most interesting thing about his character is how long it takes him to discover a basic fact of the plot that several other characters--both on his side and working against him--are keeping from him!
Is it a lot to keep track of? Um, not particularly, since the plot moves along too fast for us to get too wrapped in the whole situation. But then, we don't have time to get bored either. Which is kind of what we expect from a B movie with a title like Star Reporter, right?
At the center of it all, Warren Hull is not bad in the title role, though perhaps the most interesting thing about his character is how long it takes him to discover a basic fact of the plot that several other characters--both on his side and working against him--are keeping from him!
Is it a lot to keep track of? Um, not particularly, since the plot moves along too fast for us to get too wrapped in the whole situation. But then, we don't have time to get bored either. Which is kind of what we expect from a B movie with a title like Star Reporter, right?
Plot's full of holes, but fast pacing disguises many, if not all
JohnHowardReid1 December 2013
Warning: Spoilers
The best thing about Star Reporter is its female lead, Marsha Hunt, here making her sixteenth film, would you believe? Although she was billed in second place to then-famous Walter C. Kelly in her very first film, The Virginia Judge (1935), movie photographers still didn't know how to light her face attractively fifteen pictures later. Fortunately, M-G-M took notice of her performance in this movie and signed her to a contract. Her roles and her charisma improved. But even with Arthur Martinelli's none-too-flattering photography in Star Reporter, she's still the movie's number-one attraction. The story – complete with some really crazy twists – is strictly dime-novel stuff, although it does engage one's interest adequately, thanks to Hunt's charisma and some solid acting by the support cast, particularly by Wallis Clark as the D.A., Morgan Wallace as the hero's dad and Virginia Howell in a meaty role (for once!) as our hero's mum. As for the hero himself, as played here by Warren Hull, although he acts the role vigorously, he makes little impression – but that's good. He's saddled with some really crazy twists in the plot, yet he cleverly manages to make us unaware as to just how unlikely and paper-thin these developments actually are! The movie was directed by Howard Bretherton, a first-class film editor (Heroes for Sale, Baby Face) but a less interesting – if reasonably competent – director.
Despite a very low budget and some plot problems, it's an agreeable time-passer.
planktonrules20 June 2010
Warning: Spoilers
"Star Reporter" is not a film that you should rush out to see. It's got some serious problems with the plot now and then, a very low budget and predictability. And yet, it is entertaining if you are a fan of B-movies from this period.
The film is about the District Attorney and his reporter friend in their efforts to crack organized crime. Their big lead comes when a murder suspect is caught--and the crook knows a lot about the mob and might just be willing to talk. However, the mob isn't about to let this happen and will do anything to get this guy off the hook--though oddly, they don't just have him murdered (this seemed like the logical alternative to me). But, how the mob handles this is novel--as they discover that the killer is actually the father of the reporter and they plan on exploiting this! This ridiculous coincidence is pretty hard to believe as is the incident with the reporter's fiancée (Marsha Hunt) getting accused of murder herself (after she's in a particularly dumb scene involving a gun). While the plot problems are obvious, the film has a certain charm and is oddly compelling--mostly because the script, while clichéd, works well as a B-film.
The film is about the District Attorney and his reporter friend in their efforts to crack organized crime. Their big lead comes when a murder suspect is caught--and the crook knows a lot about the mob and might just be willing to talk. However, the mob isn't about to let this happen and will do anything to get this guy off the hook--though oddly, they don't just have him murdered (this seemed like the logical alternative to me). But, how the mob handles this is novel--as they discover that the killer is actually the father of the reporter and they plan on exploiting this! This ridiculous coincidence is pretty hard to believe as is the incident with the reporter's fiancée (Marsha Hunt) getting accused of murder herself (after she's in a particularly dumb scene involving a gun). While the plot problems are obvious, the film has a certain charm and is oddly compelling--mostly because the script, while clichéd, works well as a B-film.
If he's as good a writer as the scriptwriters here are, then he definitely is a star.
mark.waltz21 January 2019
Warning: Spoilers
This clever mix of crime and newspaper drama with a touch of traditional soap opera thrown in is surprisingly good for a Monogram programmer. It features some good performances and is detailed enough to keep your attention without becoming too convoluted. The story concerns the secrets of the title character's mother (Virginia Howell) who was once married to a crime figure the star reporter (Warren Hull) is trying to have put behind bars. This leads both Howell and Hull to become subject to blackmail, and it becomes more intense when Hull's girlfriend, Marsha Hunt, is framed for murder.
The acting, particularly by Hunt and Howell, is very good. While the budget does look low, that isn't reflected in other qualities that this film has. Morgan Wallace as the gangster is appropriately smarmy, and the twist concerning his former relationship with Howell, exposed early on for the audience to be aware of, floats like a time-bomb ticking over the remainder of the plot. Hull is simply just adequate in his performance, overshadowed by the other actors I mentioned above. There's enough tension and mystery and plenty of twists to keep the audience interested and that shows that on occasion even the skid row studios could come up with something nearly resembling a classic.
The acting, particularly by Hunt and Howell, is very good. While the budget does look low, that isn't reflected in other qualities that this film has. Morgan Wallace as the gangster is appropriately smarmy, and the twist concerning his former relationship with Howell, exposed early on for the audience to be aware of, floats like a time-bomb ticking over the remainder of the plot. Hull is simply just adequate in his performance, overshadowed by the other actors I mentioned above. There's enough tension and mystery and plenty of twists to keep the audience interested and that shows that on occasion even the skid row studios could come up with something nearly resembling a classic.
Quota quickie quickly outstays its welcome
Leofwine_draca26 February 2017
Warning: Spoilers
STAR REPORTER is a typical low budget crime drama from Monogram. The film lacks the kind of spark that makes these films so watchable and as a result it feels rather tired and slight. The plot is fast paced and with plenty of incident, but when none of it is involving it becomes a bit of a problem as it tends to go by in a blur.
The main character is the usual nice-but-dull protagonist seen in films such as this. He's gunning for a crime boss but through a plot contrivance doesn't realise the bad guy is his own father. It's a bit hard to swallow. A legal ally does know and tries to cover for the father for the son's sake, so the son takes out his wrath on the lawyer instead. It all comes clean in the end, but the journey is ordinary and devoid of depth so that you just won't care when it does.
The main character is the usual nice-but-dull protagonist seen in films such as this. He's gunning for a crime boss but through a plot contrivance doesn't realise the bad guy is his own father. It's a bit hard to swallow. A legal ally does know and tries to cover for the father for the son's sake, so the son takes out his wrath on the lawyer instead. It all comes clean in the end, but the journey is ordinary and devoid of depth so that you just won't care when it does.
Slow, Dull, And That's The Publisher
boblipton8 April 2024
Warren Hull took over as publisher when he father was killed. He backed his parents' old friend, Wallis Clark, in his campaign as District Attorney; he and Clark's daughter, Marsha Hunt, being in love may have had something to do with it. They have the signed confession of hired killer Morgan Wallace, and hope to use it to force Wallace into testimony against Clay Clement and his mob apparatus. But Clement has something that should stop everything in its tracks. He knows that Wallace is the actual father of Hull.
I suppose it's a potentially interesting story, but under the direction of the usually reliable Howard Bretherton, this picture is a slow, confusing mess. Everyone talks fast, but they keep repeating the same thing, so the plot stalls out, and then there's a twist like Clement sending someone to steal the confession, so everything is back to the beginning, somehow making a 60-minute B seem much longer.
I suppose it's a potentially interesting story, but under the direction of the usually reliable Howard Bretherton, this picture is a slow, confusing mess. Everyone talks fast, but they keep repeating the same thing, so the plot stalls out, and then there's a twist like Clement sending someone to steal the confession, so everything is back to the beginning, somehow making a 60-minute B seem much longer.
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