Philo Vance's Secret Mission

1947's "Philo Vance's Secret Mission" began the short 3 film series of Vance films produced by Poverty Row's PRC (Producers Releasing Corporation), which would soon be absorbed into Eagle-Lion Films. All three had been completed by January 1947, with this initial entry issued last (Aug 30 '47)- number 2 "Philo Vance's Gamble" came out first (Apr 13), number 3 "Philo Vance Returns" released second (June 19), making for odd continuity as it starred William Wright in the title role rather than Alan Curtis, who had played Vance in the first two. This was the final screen incarnation of Philo Vance, nothing like the sophisticated investigator first played by William Powell, who based his deductions on the psychology behind the crimes (there is a mention of District Attorney Markham in "Philo Vance's Gamble"). They must have correctly assumed "Secret Mission" to be the best, saving it for last (shot late Sept-early Oct 1946): the Alan Curtis Vance is burdened with a sometimes helpful, mostly unfunny sidekick in Frank Jenks' Ernie Clark, basically repeating his own Doc Williams character from Universal's Crime Club trio of Bill Crane mysteries, "The Westland Case," "The Lady in the Morgue," and "The Last Warning." Curtis is neither suave nor urbane, but provides what the script required, a hard bitten gumshoe more typical of the 40s, in the style of The Falcon, with the same predilection to help out damsels in distress. A pulp magazine publisher, Martin Jamison (Paul Maxey), calls in Vance to help him solve the murder of his partner seven years earlier, an unsolved mystery due to the swift disappearance of the corpse. Sheila Ryan plays a model who quickly attaches herself to Vance (either him or Ernie!), and when they later arrive at Jamison's home a gunshot is heard. Imagine their surprise when the body is found in the trunk of Vance's car, putting him in the position of having to clear himself. Some very interesting turns succeed in making this one head and shoulders above the two that followed. As the still grieving widow, lovely Tala Birell enjoys a more substantial role than she would have in the next, "Philo Vance's Gamble," while Toni Todd, who survives here, would not survive the next. James Bell plays the unorthodox sheriff, less obtrusive than Frank Jenks, whose 'detecketive' work leaves much to be desired.

OK, I am crazy but I really like these PRC Philo Vance mysteries. In fact they could be the best films PRC ever made. These Vance mysteries are well written, have a good cast and Curtis is excellent as Vance. But fair warning here, if one is expecting the Vance from the S. S. Van Dine novels, one will be greatly disappointed. Philo Vance is not the urbane genius of the books, but a standard 1940's handsome wise-cracking rascal.

In this film, Vance is hired by a publisher to write a true unsolved mystery. Many years before, the publisher's partner disappeared and the publisher believes he has found the solution to the mystery. Before he can explain all to Vance the publisher is found murdered. There are many suspects who all work at the publishing house and have reasons for keeping the mystery unsolved. Vance's probe reveals a very clever twist that had this veteran of movie mysteries fooled.

Publisher Martin Jamison sends for Philo Vance as he wants to hire him as a technical advisor on the crime stories he publishes. Paul Morgan, Jamison's partner, regards the plan as foolish. Jamison tells his secretary Mona Bannister to bring Vance to his home that night and he will reveal the solution to the seven-year mystery of the killing of Haddon Phillips, former partner in the firm. Phillips ex-wife, now a receptionist for the company, is alarmed when she overhears. As Vance and Mona drive up, two shots are heard and Jamison's body is later found in the trunk of Vance's car.

Alan Curtis as Philo Vance does a great job, is quite likeable, fast-talking with good one liners; his pairing with the leading actress is great. Their rapport is what make this entry fun. Of course, it's well-paced and the mystery is good.

Famous detective Alan Curtis (Philo Vance) visits a magazine publisher. He wants start a line of mystery books. He wishes to hire Curtis to collaborate on it, and offers as a subject the murder of his partner seven years earlier -- the body vanished. He thinks he knows who did it. When Curtis and Sheila Ryan show up at his house to discuss it, they spot his body, break in and call the sheriff. Meanwhile the body has disappeared and turned up in the trunk of Curtis' sports car.

This is not your grandmother's Philo Vance. He's not a society man who dabbles in ratiocination. He has an eye for the ladies, and they for him. He speaks slang and uses a gun when appropriate. In short, it's another Black Mask style mystery, with Philo Vance's name added for marketing purposes, more Michael Shayne than the badly written character Willard Huntington Wright had created twenty years earlier. It's a fair mystery, but utterly forgettable.

The director of this movie is Reginald Leborg. That sounds like a name that an emigrant in the 7th Avenue shmatta trade might have adopted because it sounded classy. Actually, it was the pseudonym of Reginald Grobel, a scion of a Viennese banking family who wanted to make movies, and simply reversed his last name. He made a lot of movies, the last of them in 1974, if he ever directed a good one, I've yet to see it.

Tiny PRC Studio made three Philo Vance films in 1947. While "Philo Vance's Secret Mission" was the first one they made, it was the final one they released. I'm not sure why, but I can only assume because it's by far the worst of the three movies. It's obvious and quite cliched...and is pretty much what you'd expect from PRC!

The film begins with a newspaper publisher hiring Vance as a technical advisor for a series of crime articles. Now here's where it gets dumb...the publisher lets folks know that he's got information which will solve a long unsolved crime. In mystery films, this MEANS the publisher will soon assume room temperature--before he has a chance to divulge this information!! What follows are some obvious plot elements, cliches and the like...and the film was simply disappointing. It's a shame, as the other two films in the series are quite nice...particularly "Philo Vance Returns".