Dick Tracy (1945) User Reviews

pleasant programmer

[blanche-2 · 6/10 · 18 September 2005]

I suppose everyone has his or her own idea of what Dick Tracy should look like out of his cartoon realm. It seems from reading some of the comments that Morgan Conway was no one's idea. I guess in my head I've always thought of John Larkin, the original Mike Carr on "Edge of Night" to be a good person for Tracy. Conway seems more of a character actor and less of a lead than I imagine Tracy. He has a pleasant smile, though.

Anne Jeffreys, now at 80+ and absolutely gorgeous to this day, was asked about the Dick Tracy series a few years ago, and she denied ever making any Dick Tracy movies. It wasn't that she disdained them, but they were turned out so quickly, she had no recollection of doing them.

This was a decent programmer but not much came through as far as personalities, except perhaps from Mike Mazurki as Splitface. The film moves along well. The subplot with Jane Greer seemed totally superfluous and never was resolved. Oh, well, soon enough, she would be on to better things.

Murdering A Cross Section of Citizenry

[bkoganbing · 5/10 · 18 January 2012]

The first of four Dick Tracy films that were made by RKO Studios in the Forties is a straight action filled drama so unlike the live cartoon that Warren Beatty did and cast with a bunch of Hollywood names. Morgan Conway plays the square jawed detective with Anne Jeffreys as the eternally faithful and eternally exasperated Tess Truehart. If ever a man was wed to his job it was Dick Tracy as a homicide cop.

The villain here is Mike Mazurki excellently cast as Splitface and one look at him and you know why he's named that. He's responsible for a string of brutal stabbings and those scars he bares both give the city fright, but also make him impossible to trace since they were acquired in prison and render him unrecognizable. He's picked a cross section of citizens as his targets and while I think the viewer will figure it out before Conway puts it together, it's still a lot of fun.

A subsidiary villain in the film is Trevor Bardette playing a con man astrologer and hypnotist. Bardette has a real field day with the part.

Dick Tracy Detective is a fairly good B film from RKO Studios and the cast looks like they're having a good time.

Dick Tracy vs Splitface

[utgard14 · 6/10 · 25 January 2014]

The first installment in RKO's short Dick Tracy series of films in the 1940s. This one sees Tracy (Morgan Conway) working on a case involving a string of murders committed by Splitface (Mike Mazurki). This series was churned out quickly and cheaply. So don't expect an "A" production from them. That being said, it's a thoroughly enjoyable way to spend an hour. Fast-paced, fun detective stories with action and some comedy. Mike Mazurki is a great villain. Conway does fine as Tracy. Lyle Latell plays Tracy's bumbling sidekick Pat Patton. He's the movie's comic relief. Anne Jeffreys plays his Tracy's girlfriend Tess Trueheart. Also an early role for Jane Greer. Give it a shot and I'm sure you'll find it an enjoyable time-killer.

Chester Gould's character done right

[Jtalledo · 19 August 2000]

It's kind of funny that the Warren Beatty Dick Tracy movie and Tim Burton's Batman movie were released so close to each other. Each movie tried valiantly to recreate the atmosphere of their respective comics with high impact visuals. However, Batman did a much better job carrying the comic's look and feel over to the big screen. The new Dick Tracy movie's wild colors and cheesy backdrops took away from the all-star cast that the producers put together. The original Dick Tracy movie featuring Morgan Conway is much more realistic and doesn't try as hard to be a live action comic strip and is the better movie for it.

First off, things must be said about Morgan Conway's portrayal of everyone's favorite detective. He bears a decent resemblance to his 2-D counterpart, but not one nearly as uncanny as Ralph Byrd's look. Nevertheless, Conway does a good job getting across Tracy's tough as nails yet sympathetic family-oriented character. You can't help but think that Conway looks and sounds too much like Humphrey Bogart to be Dick Tracy though.

Anne Jeffries and Mickey Kuhn as Tess and Junior do decent jobs as well. Pat Patton is a little deemphasized though, something that would remedied in future films. The scarred Splitface doesn't have the personality that some of the comic strip characters do, but he's passable as an original character. The whole movie doesn't try to be exactly like the comic as the 1960's Batman and the latest Dick Tracy movie did later. Rather, it's more true-to-life with some subtle hints of its comic roots. It keeps the stereotypical police department, the daring feats of courage by the heroes and the rogues gallery of characters from the strip while giving Dick Tracy's world a more real feel. That real-world feel puts this movie a cut above the 1990 movie.

1st installment in Dick Tracy serial has quirky appeal

[matthewlcorey · 6/10 · 26 March 2021]

Don't expect elaborate make-up effects or musical numbers from this installment in the original Dick Tray series, and you won't be disappointed. The plot is a whole lot goofier and creepier than Warren Beatty's version and the villains are just as perverse. Tracy's refreshingly pedestrian approach to crime-solving and his bizarre domestic situation add quirky appeal to this film.

Back when the "B's" got "A's"!

[mark.waltz · 6/10 · 7 January 2018]

A nefarious murderer known to Dick Tracy (Morgan Conway) only as "splitface" has a target of 14 victims, and it's up to Tracy, his bumbling associates and the feisty Tess Trueheart (Anne Jeffreys) to find and stop him. There's spooky hypnotists, a creepy mortician (any other kind in old movies?) and a mysterious femme fatale (Jane Greer) whose nightclub owner father may or may not be hiding the hideous fiend (Mike Mazurki). Dick has an adopted son, here, a science wiz kid played with amusing over confidence (in the character, not the actor) played by Mickey Kuhn. Milton Parsons, playing the aptly named coroner "Deathridge", is totally deadpan and hysterical.

The film starts off on a creepy note with a young woman being strapped on the street, deathly afraid as Splitface face, unseen, approaches. While no real motive other than revenge is given for these gruesome murders, that is insignificant in the way it that the film is presented. There are some terrific elements in the dark photography, and the final confrontation between Dick Tracy and Splitface is exciting. Morgan Conway, cast as the title character, was not as well accepted as the previous actor, Ralph Byrd, and after only two films would be let go from that part, but he does a good enough job in this film that I could have seen him continuing. Anne Jeffreys is definitely the best test to heart that I have ever seen, and her intermingling with the smartly made up Greer is delightfully catty. I can see how film producers would thus cast Greer as Femme fatales in the genre of film noir where she excelled. While the series only lasted for four films, I found all of them to be extremely enjoyable and fast-moving. It certainly could have lasted another half dozen or so.

Pretty Much Like Any Police Drama

[Hitchcoc · 5/10 · 21 September 2006]

If you had given Dick Tracy's name to any police type in any movie of the forties, it would be indistinguishable. The fact is that while this is a modestly entertaining movie, the comic strip being of it is just not there. Where is the technology, the distinctive sense of the comic strip? It's just not there. There is some semblance of humor, the byplay among the other detectives and Tess's frustration with dating the great detective (she never gets to go to dinner), but it still doesn't reproduce the comic strip. All that considered, it's a decent movie with an interesting plot. Like so many Tracy characters, Split Face is carrying around his angst, wanting to get back at those who convicted him. He is nasty, but has the fatal flaw of carelessness. Tracy is pretty dull, but I was a religious reader of the comic strip as a child and liked his silence. His romantic relationship always seemed forced to me. A real comic book hero shouldn't have time for women, right.

Not great, but a lot better than I'd hoped it would be

[planktonrules · 6/10 · 28 April 2007]

Years ago, I bought a wonderful book entitled "The 50 Worst Movies Ever Made and How They Got to be That Way". I agreed with most of the inclusions but I have found that a few of the films were definitely NOT bad enough to make the book (such as THAT HAGAN GIRL and DICK TRACY VS. CUEBALL). Because of the inclusion of the Dick Tracy film, I avoided watching the films for years--thinking they stank. And, when I did see my first (DICK TRACY'S DILEMMA), it was pretty bad. But today I sat down and watched the first film from the series as well as DICK TRACY VS. CUEBALL and found both of them to be decent B-movies--average, yes, but far from "50 Worst" territory.

Now that I've seen all four of the RKO Tracy films, I realize that this first one is the best. Part of it might be because "Splitface" (Mike Mazurky) was a pretty good villain and NOT as silly as some of the ones in later films. He was a big goon who killed his victims by slashing them repeatedly with a mortician's knife. Also, there were actually some decent plot twists and the action was pretty horrific towards the end--with some amazingly graphic murders for the time period in which they were made. Decent and entertaining--this is a good bet for fans of B-detective films (like me).

By the way, the mortician who is brutally killed in this movie appears again in the next film, DICK TRACY VS. CUEBALL and he showed no signs of being a zombie. So much for continuity.

Enough Mystery and Action to Keep a Person's Attention

[Uriah43 · 5/10 · 23 March 2013]

A psychotic killer by the name of "Splitface" (Mike Masurki) is on the loose and is killing people of different backgrounds. What's even stranger is that extortion notes are found on the victims but the people who pay are still killed anyway. Even the mayor is being threatened and "Dick Tracy" (Morgan Conway) is being pressured to find the killer as soon as possible. Now, even though this is a rather short film (barely over an hour long) there is enough mystery and action to keep a person's attention throughout. Even so, the script was a little corny at times and the performances of all concerned were average at best. Other than that there really isn't too much to be said about this movie except that it was filmed in black and white and some viewers may not like it because they don't realize how popular Dick Tracy was back in the day. Still, it was an okay film and worth what little time was spent watching it.

A Good View

[arfdawg-1 · 7/10 · 24 April 2014]

Dick is faced with a series of brutal murders in which the victims, all from different social and economic backgrounds, are viciously slashed to pieces.

Suspects abound but Tracy, getting a clue that there will be fifteen murders in all, must find the common thread among the victims before more are killed.

These RKO B pictures are really good. I've very surprised that given Hollywood's lack of creativity these days that no one is developing a Dick Tracy series.

The movie will not change your life, but it's satisfying and a decent watch.

Slow and dull programmer

[djensen1 · 3/10 · 24 April 2005]

Morgan Conway is the insensitive workaholic detective in this sub-par programmer. Mazurki as Splitface is good, but the rest of the cast is stagy and dull. The support is largely the same faces as in other Dick Tracy flicks, altho some play different characters.

The plot follows Tracy as he tries to find a blackmailing killer. He gets mixed up with an occultist who has dark insight into the crimes. As usual, Tracy is actually not a very good detective, and only solves the crime by chance and endlessly tailing the suspects.

The predictable plot has a fairly clever twist, altho there is some stupendously dopey dialog along the way. Who forgets someone who vows to one day kill you?

Fun and Exciting little B-Gem!

[andy-1255 · 9/10 · 21 January 2008]

If you're expecting MALTESE FALCON you're in the wrong place. This first in the RKO Dick Tracy movies based on Chester Gould's hardboiled policeman is very faithful to the source material and a LOT of fun.

The cast is well chosen and Morgan Conway looks like he stepped right off the comics page.

What is unexpected is the inky black noirish camera work, something that was very rare for a B-picture. The entire series was entertaining, with Ralph Byrd replacing Conway for the third and fourth installments, and the two earliest entries were geared towards an adult audience as shown in the violence depicted.

Pull the stick out of your crack, sit back and enjoy some very entertaining little films from a more innocent time, when our good guys were someone to look up to.

RKO take over the Dick Tracy series

[Leofwine_draca · 6/10 · 29 July 2017]

Previously, the DICK TRACY features I've been watching were the Republic serials starring Ralph Byrd; this 1945 film saw RKO take over production and reduce the running times to one-hour pictures. They also have a new hero here in the form of Morgan Conway, who isn't quite as much fun as Byrd was. The good news is that this fast-paced crime outing has a top villain the form of the hugely imposing 'Splitface', a nightmarish-looking creation who'd give Rondo Hatton a run for his money. The thrills and spills that follow are slick and surprisingly adult-themed in places, particularly that vicious opening murder sequence.

Kind of cartoonish

[xherridea · 5/10 · 14 July 2020]

This film was a decent detective story. I was never bored although you could argue that it takes skill to make an hour long movie boring. Some of the cinematography is great. There is bad child acting. I liked the humour in this film, unlike a lot of films from the 30s-60s it doesn't make fun of the female characters and doesn't contain an annoying comic relief. I will say, however, that the characters do fall into one dimensional stereotypes. Also the mystery itself isn't well developed as the main villain is some Rando that just turns up at the end. There is one tense sequence at the end. Overall, it's a short film and not a total waste of time, so watch it if you really like noir, detectives or any of the other movies in this franchise.

Interesting Story Makes Up For Routine Production

[Snow Leopard · 21 May 2002]

Despite a rather routine production, this B-mystery is worth watching for the story, which is not bad. The beginning sets things up rather well, with Tracy trying to figure out both who the elusive 'Splitface' might be, and how he chose his apparently unconnected victims. There are several fairly interesting characters that he encounters along the way, and things move at a good pace most of the time. With a bigger budget and perhaps a little better writing here and there (in particular, to give poor Tess some better lines), it could be quite good. But there's no reason to quibble too much with it the way it is, since it's more than enough to provide decent entertainment for an hour or so.

Standard police story without any comic strip look

[jcholguin · 6/10 · 7 August 2001]

Mention Dick Tracy and a comic strip comes too mind with criminals with strange names. The film opens with a murder of a school teacher that is stabbed and an extortion letter is found on her, signed by splitface. Only $500 is demanded from her while the mayor's price is $10,000. Dick Tracy must find this splitface. Many suspects are found but either they disappear or are killed. Good film to watch if you are interested in a manic that slashes people with a knife.

Serial Killer

[StrictlyConfidential · 6/10 · 8 October 2021]

"Dick Tracy" was originally released back in 1945.

Anyway - As the story goes - The body count has mounted to fifteen when Dick Tracy gets involved in the investigation. The victims come from every facet of society and economic status. The one common denominator is the method of their demise... they were all slashed to pieces. Now our hero must find a link that will lead him to the culprit before the killer strikes again.

Dick Tracy meets SplitFace.

[jaybob · 5/10 · 13 December 2002]

Morgan Conway vainly attempts to portray the comic strip hero. all the supporting characters from the strip are her & adequatly portrayed.Mike Muzurki play Splitface, the mad slasher. there are a few good comic moments, & thankfully the film is only 62 minutes long. fair production values. Rating ** 60 points IMDB 5

Mazurki Needed More Presence

[TheFearmakers · 6/10 · 4 March 2024]

The towering, muscular, intimidating and always formidable noir-villain Mike Mazurki, who would soon steal MURDER MY SWEET from Dick Powell, is the perfect choice for the DICK TRACY villain Splitface... more like Scarface since that's all that makes the titular split and, either way, he still looks pretty spooky...

Yet he mostly lurks in the noirish shadows, remaining a mystery to the characters but not the audience, who sees him prowling before each murder: so this picture's whodunnit aspect is as ultimately wasted as Muzurki himself...

In the next RKO feature with Morgan Conway as Tracy, the villainous Cueball is more interesting because he interacts with both the good guys and bad... making DICK TRACY aka DICK TRACY DETECTIVE more a police procedural with the villain on the side, where he'd never be again in the following three vehicles: a shame since Mazurki has so much potential (while emaciated Milton Parsons as an undertaker named Deathridge is far more creepy and effective)...

Although what does make the two Conway movies shine (before being replaced by original actor Ralph Byrd) is DILLINGER moll Anne Jeffreys as faithful Tess Trueheart, jealous of rich semi-suspect's daughter Jane Greer... the latter more intense than in OUT OF THE PAST, a movie that would forever epitomize noir... although these Dick Tracy flicks, despite never making any lists, is visually the noir brass standard.

All foam...no beer

[Ed-Shullivan · 3/10 · 21 January 2019]

When you see the name Dick Tracy you assume you are in for a good mystery movie, but unfortunately back in 1945 this 61 minute version played out more like a 30 minute TV sitcom rather than anything that near resembled a suspenseful or mysterious film. Actor Morgan Conway who plays Dick Tracy played him more like a vice principal taking care of some kid named Junior (now that is an original name eh?) played by Mickey Kuhn, his girlfriend Tess Trueheart (another original name) played by Anne Jeffreys and his detective sidekick Pat Patton, played by Lyle Latell.

Even in 1945, there were a lot more interesting crime/mystery films released such as Mildred Pierce, Crime, Inc., and Dillinger. If you like a certain type of burger, pizza, and/or beer just like you like a certain type of crime/mystery film then this film will not saisfy your appetite, it didn't satisfy me.

I give this version of Dick Tracy a poor 3 out of 10 rating

"If you examine the moon it will be for fingerprints"

[hwgrayson · 6/10 · 17 February 2024]

Dick Tracy pursues a serial killer called Splitface, who is murdering several seemingly unconnected men and women. This is a decent movie with some striking scenes, particularly with Splitface played menacingly by Mike Mazurki. His quest for violent vengeance contrasts rather oddly with the lighter tone of the rest of the film. Tracy is performed adequately by Morgan Conway. He is overshadowed by mighty Mike Mazurki, Trevor Bardette as the vague mystic Prof. Linwood J. Starling and Milton Parsons as the jittery undertaker (named Deathridge of course!) The charming leading ladies don't have much to do. Mickey Kuhn as Junior gets a heroic moment though. The film looks good and the conclusion at the disused dock set is exciting as Tracy and Splitface fight it out.

"You're the best known unknown that I've ever known."

[classicsoncall · 5/10 · 10 October 2008]

It used to always make me wonder, even as a kid, why a movie's murderous villain would sneak up close to one of the story's lead characters and fail to close the deal. It made me consider them entirely inept, even while they were leaving a trail of bodies behind elsewhere throughout the picture. The scene with Mike Mazurki's Splitface creaking open the door right next to Tess Trueheart (Anne Jeffreys) is a prime example. Of course had he followed through, millions of Dick Tracy fans across America would have been severely outraged, and with good cause. But it gives you an idea why this kind of suspense doesn't work very well today, if it ever did.

Then there's Splitface - what's the deal with him? Here's a villain that's probably got the most distinctive scar that can be used to identify him, and he signs his threatening notes with - 'Splitface'! Now I don't know about you, but if I were going to try and extort a pile of money from someone, I wouldn't sign it using my own nickname, especially if it could identify me with a characteristic that no one else could possibly have. Of course that's addressed later in the picture, as we learn how Professor Starling (Trevor Bardette) was trying to capitalize on the villain's handiwork.

While watching the picture, the thing that really made me sit up and take notice was the way Splitface dispatched his victims. Done mostly in darkened silhouette, you still get a pretty good sense that the murders were extremely violent utilizing a stab and slash technique that appeared pretty gruesome. Done today, you would have the requisite amount of spurting and gushing blood, but even without it, the couple times you see Splitface in action solidifies his character as one mean hombre. You have to hand it to Mike Mazurki, he made for a pretty scary character.

This was my first look at Morgan Conway in any kind of role, and I'm on the side of many reviewers on this board who feel he doesn't quite fit the bill. When they both first appeared on screen together, I would have guessed that it was Lyle Latell who played Tracy, except that he was the shorter of the two, and that wouldn't have worked. As for Anne Jeffreys, it's always cool to see her in a picture; my own best recollection of her as a kid growing up was the role of Marion Kirby in the 'Topper" TV series.

It would have been cool if the movie offered some of those well punned nicknames like you had in "Dick Tracy Meets Gruesome" - I'm thinking about villains like I.M. Learned and Dr. A. Tomic. They were a mainstay of the Chester Gould comic strip, and I always got a kick out of those. Here, the best they could come up with was the name for the undertaker - a bit of a stretch that he would go by Deathridge.

Surprisingly Violent and Atmospheric with a Nightmarish Villain

[LeonLouisRicci · 8/10 · 29 November 2015]

With its Noirish Photography and Ambiance this, the First of Four "Dick Tracy" Features is a B-Movie Surprise with its Brutal Violence and Oddball Characters.

Morgan Conway is the Weakest Link in this otherwise Fine Film that Contains more than its Share of Suspense, Thrills, and Entertainment. Mike Mazurki is Perfectly Cast as the Psychotic Villain "Splitface". He Brings a Hulkish and Nightmarish Character that Possibly Caused Kids in the 1940's to Squirm.

There is an Occultist Astrologer complete with Telescope and Crystal Ball that is Dealt a Violent and Visceral Confrontation with the Psychologically and Physically Scarred "Splitface'.

Tess Trueheart with a Tracy Devotion that is Commendable and yet Sad. Junior makes and Appearance for some Comedy and Needed Relief from the Gruesome Stuff. Pat Patton serves the Same Purpose.

Overall, the Violence, Noir Night Scenes, and general Feel of the Movie is Not what one would Expect for this Type. Recommended for Fans of the Comic Strip and B-Movie Lovers.

Note...The 1990 "Dick Tracy" Movie made by and starring Warren Beatty is a faithful and wondrous underrated Film. A colorful, ultra-stylish, and very different Movie that deserves more attention.

B-movie product

[SnoopyStyle · 6/10 · 11 May 2023]

Police detective Dick Tracy (Morgan Conway) battles his rogues' gallery of villains. He is supported by loyal girlfriend Tess Trueheart (Anne Jeffreys) and adopted son Junior despite his work taking precedent. In this case, he is facing off against gangster Splitface (Mike Mazurki) with a scar running down his face. The investigation leads to nightclub owner Steve Owens and his daughter Judith (Jane Greer).

Dick Tracy was first published in 1931. RKO gets the rights and this is their first movie. It's an hour long and has the feel of a B-movie serial. Splitface is not actually from the comic strip, but he looks like it. It has some good fist-i-cuffs and stunt work for the climax. It's a bunch of chases and pursuits with a sprinkling of functional investigating. It's a quick in-and-out with nothing that demanding.

Deadly Verdict

[sol-kay · 5/10 · 18 September 2005]

(Some Spoilers) Dick Tracy, Morgan Conway, is out to stop a split-faced killer who's been extorting his victims before he slices them up in this film-noir-like crime drama with former professional wrestler Paul Mazurki as the elusive and hulking murderer.

From his first victim schoolteacher Dorothy Stafford, Mary Currier, to the threat on the mayors, William Halligan,life the killer sent extortion letters to them wanting from $500.00, from Stafford, to $10,000.00, from the mayor, in extortion money. The only person who the killer actually got to pay him off was Willbert Thomas with the $1,000.00 in small bills, that his letter to him demanded, also was later found slashed to death. It turned out that someone who knew the murderer and he motives for his singling out people who had, what at first seemed, nothing in common with each other and thus blackmailing them without the killers knowledge. In the end it would lead to him becoming one of Splitface's victim.

There's a number of confusing plot lines in "Dick Tracy" mostly with the movie going into the murder weapon, a surgical knife, that Alexis "Splitface" Benning used in his crimes; why go through all the trouble of breaking into a funeral home to steal it, together with two other like-wise knives, and thus leave clues to his identity?

The part of Professor Linwood Starling, Trevor Bardette, was also a bit strange. He looks into his crystal ball and seems to predict his own death at the hands of Splitface but later is shocked and surprised when Splitface recites word for word what he said, by looking into his ball, before he murdered him! was Starling really a clairvoyant or did he just make a lucky, or unlucky for him, guess? There's also the funeral director Deathridge, Milton Person, what exactly did he have to do with either Splitface or Starling and why did Splitface murder him? It's never really brought out in the movie and the only connection he had with the killer was that he, Splitface, used a knife that he stole from him to do his dirty work.

The clever Splitface let his guard down by being accidentally seen by Dick Tracy's girlfriend Tess,Ann Jeffreys, who he was determined to find and shut up forever. When he did find Tess instead of murdering her, like all of his previous victims, Splitface kidnaps her and is later tracked down by Tracy and the police putting an end to his reign of terror.

The reason for Splitface's murder spree, and why he targeted the person that he did for elimination, becomes obvious when it turns out that all of them just happened to be jurors on his trial for murdering, by cutting to ribbons, his girlfriend. The jurors sentenced him to a long prison term which made Splitface very angry at them.

The final scene with the powerful six foot six 230 pound Splitface getting the hell knocked out of him by a slim under six foot Dick Tracy looked embarrassingly staged as well as totally unbelievable.