Mystery of Marie Roget (1942)

A detective tries to unravel the strange circumstances surrounding the death of a young actress.

Director:

Phil Rosen

Writers:

Michael Jacoby, Edgar Allan Poe (story)

Stars:

Patric Knowles, Maria Montez, Maria Ouspenskaya

Cast

Cast overview:
Patric Knowles	...	Dr. Paul Dupin
Maria Montez	...	Marie Roget
Maria Ouspenskaya	...	Madame Cecile Roget
John Litel	...	M. Henri Beauvais
Edward Norris	...	Marcel Vigneaux
Lloyd Corrigan	...	Prefect Gobelin
Nell O'Day	...	Camille Roget
Frank Reicher	...	Magistrate
Clyde Fillmore	...	Mons. De Luc
Paul E. Burns	...	Gardener (as Paul Burns)
Norma Drury Boleslavsky	...	Madame De Luc (as Norma Drury)
Charles Middleton	...	Curator at the zoo
William Ruhl	...	Detective (as Bill Ruhl)
Reed Hadley	...	Naval Officer

Storyline

A detective tries to unravel the strange circumstances surrounding the death of a young actress.

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Plot Keywords:

theater | character name in title

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Taglines:

Beautiful beast! Maddening...with her soft caress! Murdering...with steel-clawed terror!

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Genres:

Mystery

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 April 1942 (USA)

Also Known As:

Phantom of Paris

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

61 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The original Edgar Allan Poe story is based on the real-life murder of Mary Cecilia Rogers, who was found floating in the Hudson River near Weehawken, NJ. Poe transplanted the events to Paris and placed the case in the hands of amateur detective C. Auguste Dupin. In a weird twist, Poe's ultimate conclusion as to the circumstances of the crime were proved correct when the murderers confessed well after "The Mystery of Marie Roget" was published.

User Reviews

average B-mystery with proper Universal flavor

This one hour film is almost a paradigm for the average B movie from the 30s and 40s. It has some suspense, (it uses the great forest sets left over from The Wolf Man), and a fast pace and if you are into this type of mystery go see it, but don't go out of your way to find it. The performances, direction, etc. are all adequate and it progresses in the typical 'the dumb cop can't figure it out, so the smart young independent detective knows everything' approach. Generallly atmospheric and fun, though.