Dr. Gillespie's Criminal Case (1943)

When Roy, a homicidal maniac was put away for murder, Gillespie tried to get him committed to an insane asylum instead. Now the guy's ex-fiancee wants to marry a soldier, and she goes to ... See full summary »

Director:

Willis Goldbeck

Writers:

Lawrence P. Bachmann, Martin Berkeley,

Stars:

Lionel Barrymore, Van Johnson, Keye Luke

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Lionel Barrymore	...	Dr. Leonard B. Gillespie
Van Johnson	...	Dr. Randall 'Red' Adams
Keye Luke	...	Dr. Lee Wong How
Alma Kruger	...	Molly Byrd
John Craven	...	Roy Todwell
Nat Pendleton	...	Joe Wayman
Margaret O'Brien	...	Margaret
Donna Reed	...	Marcia Bradburn
Michael Duane	...	Sgt. Patrick J. Orisin
William Lundigan	...	Alvin F. Peterson
Walter Kingsford	...	Dr. Walter Carew
Marilyn Maxwell	...	Ruth Edly
Henry O'Neill	...	Warden Kenneson
Marie Blake	...	Sally
Frances Rafferty	...	Irene

Storyline

When Roy, a homicidal maniac was put away for murder, Gillespie tried to get him committed to an insane asylum instead. Now the guy's ex-fiancee wants to marry a soldier, and she goes to Gillespie for advice about Roy. Meanwhile, Red's pursued by a pretty socialite, Lee encourages a double-amputee to live, Gillespie and the boys fight to save little Margaret from an epidemic in the children's ward, and Roy breaks out of prison...with a gun...

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Plot Keywords:

hospital | prison break | crime wave | amputee | birthday party | 

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Mystery

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

8 May 1943 (USA)

Also Known As:

A Volta da Noiva

Filming Locations:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios - 10202 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

89 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Goofs

In the scene with the little girl in a febrile coma and the interns working hard to get it down; Dr. Gillespie is seen looking at an oral thermometer that was supposedly used to check her temp. In this sort of situation that is highly unlikely. Even in this era oral and rectal thermometers were different shapes so no mistakes could be made.

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Quotes

Dr. Lee Wong How: I'm small, but I'm from Brooklyn!

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Connections

Follows Dr. Kildare's Strange Case (1940)

User Reviews

Stumblin' All Around In A Wheelchair

MGM's Dr. Kildare second feature series continues without Dr. Kildare -- Lew Ayres was in the doghouse because of his antiwar stance since starring in 1930s ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT and was serving as a medic.

In the meantime, the series carried on with Lionel Barrymore as the crusty Dr. Gillespie, with newcomers Van Johnson and Keye Luke competing for his favor as his interns. Keye Luke gets the silliest lines, as a partisan of Brooklyn. Van Johnson is interested in anatomy: female anatomy.

Unhappily, much of the feature is taken up with shtick like that, expertly delivered, but absolutely trivial and of little interest. Of more interest might be spotting other budding MGM talent including series regular Nat Pendleton, Donna Reed as a man-hungry temptress for Van Johnson, and Margeret O'Brien at her most waiflike. There is no subtlety in this movie. Director Goldbeck never got out of the Bs and this movie shows why. Unless you want to see the actors far below their best, you may want to look at this. Most people will want to give this a miss.