Had Ronald Colman played the part that Ralph Forbes plays here with better known character actors, I think this one could have been a higher class crime spoof. It has an amusing plotline involving mistaken identity (architect mistaken for escaped convict jewel thief) and a memorable leading lady (musical comedy star and later producer Paula Stone. What it lacks is a high budget and sparkle.
As is typical in the poverty row films that made Republic and Monogram seem like A studios in comparison, this has a very static pacing and some of the character actor performances are less than stellar. Forbes is good, but he's far more like a Herbert Marshall type than a Ronald Colman type. Stone however showed great potential, a lovely singer and feisty personality that didn't take away from her ladylike image. At just under an hour though it gets points for uniqueness and for striving to be better than what the filmmakers had to deal with.
As is typical in the poverty row films that made Republic and Monogram seem like A studios in comparison, this has a very static pacing and some of the character actor performances are less than stellar. Forbes is good, but he's far more like a Herbert Marshall type than a Ronald Colman type. Stone however showed great potential, a lovely singer and feisty personality that didn't take away from her ladylike image. At just under an hour though it gets points for uniqueness and for striving to be better than what the filmmakers had to deal with.