There's Always a Woman (1938)

An investigator for the district attorney and his amateur-sleuth wife compete to solve a murder mystery.

Director:

Alexander Hall

Writers:

Gladys Lehman (screen play), Wilson Collison (story)

Stars:

Joan Blondell, Melvyn Douglas, Mary Astor

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Joan Blondell	...	Sally Reardon
Melvyn Douglas	...	William 'Bill' Reardon
Mary Astor	...	Lola Fraser
Frances Drake	...	Anne Calhoun
Jerome Cowan	...	Nick Shane
Robert Paige	...	Jerry Marlowe
Thurston Hall	...	District Attorney
Pierre Watkin	...	Mr. Ketterling
Walter Kingsford	...	Grigson
Lester Matthews	...	Walter Fraser

Storyline

An investigator for the District Attorney's office quits to open his own detective agency. However, business is so bad that he finally decides to give it up and go back to his old job. As his wife is at his office closing up, a wealthy society matron walks in with a case: she wants to know if her husband is having an affair with his ex-girlfriend, who is now married. The wife accepts what looks to be an easy case, figuring than she can then persuade her husband to re-start the agency. However, when the client's husband is found murdered, she decides to investigate the murder herself. Her husband has also been assigned by the D.A. to investigate the murder, and he doesn't know that his wife is also on the case. Complications ensue.

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Plot Keywords:

screwball comedy | murder | district attorney | husband and wife sleuths | threat | 

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Taglines:

A new laugh hit from the studio that gave you "The Awful Truth"!

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Genres:

Comedy | Mystery

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Certificate:

Passed

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

20 April 1938 (USA)

Also Known As:

Min fru detektiven

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

81 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

William H. Strauss as "Rent Collector" is listed by a modern source as a cast member in this movie, but that role was played by William Burress.

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Goofs

Near the end, the dispatcher reads the wanted person alert for Mrs. Reardon. He states her complexion as blonde, which is a hair color, not a complexion.

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Quotes

Sally Reardon: There.
[Clipping the wires of a listening device with a pair of scissors]
Sally Reardon: Now we can let our back hair down.
Lola Fraser: Who planted that dictaphone?
Sally Reardon: Oh, probably that silly husband of mine. As if anyone wouldn't have sense enough to look for a dictaphone.
Lola Fraser: How long do you suppose its been there?
Sally Reardon: Why, I haven't the faintest idea but it looks awfully new. So, I guess it hasn't been used much.

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Connections

References Duck Soup (1933)

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Soundtracks

The Stars and Stripes Forever
(1896) (uncredited)
Written by John Philip Sousa
Played on a radio

User Reviews

It's not the THIN MAN, but it is...

My wife tells me that she liked THERE'S ALWAYS A WOMAN as much as THE THIN MAN (and its progeny). I don't put them in the same league – and chances are, you won't either – but my wife tells me that she liked that the woman (Joan Blondell) was the detective and the smart one. (The "smart" part can be debated, as it is not constant, but this film was made in the 1930s.) The cast was very good, but there is no William Powell. I don't care how many awards he won, Melvyn Douglas is no William Powell. And neither is Joan. (There is no Myrna Loy/subordinate wife character, which takes us back to why my wife liked this so.) If you are reading this review, chances are you'll like this film. It has the charm we can always find in comedies of this period, and Joan is wonderful as always. (And for THIN MAN fans, there is a period of suitable drinking.)