Drugstore.com Coupons
How others will see it. This is a film for lovers of old screwball comedies such as Bringing Up Baby. The uninitiated will consider the movie to be a prehistoric relic.
How I felt about it. The scenes seem disconnected and the pace slow at first. For example, Marco has a large debt to pay. The story then switches to the perfect daughter's love match. Then, to the orphanage, to pick up a budding hoodlum for the summer. A killer hangs out in the summer cottage, which hosts a party that includes practically the entire coast.
The plot becomes more and more involved, and the predicaments for Marco pile up faster than his debts. But, for most of the movie, nothing is accomplished except for the accumulation of loose threads. Predictably, in the final minutes, all the problems are resolved, one immediately after the other, almost as rapidly as shots from a tommy gun.
Of course, real life doesn't work like that. When situations become too complicated to manage, things break down. A Slight Case of Murder is a comedy, and happy endings are the rule. No amount of trouble will stick. But don't try this at home.
Edward G. Robinson had a wonderful film career, but he was never really able to shake the gangster persona that had made him a star. For ever role that stepped away from the stereotype, such as an insurance detective in Double Indemnity, there was a return to form as a racketeer, such as in Key Largo.
But Robinson probably enjoyed A Slight Case of Murder, since it was a comedy and he could subtly parody his screen persona. And because it is a comedy, we can forgive scenes that make little sense, such as the allegedly law abiding Marco trying to ditch a motorcycle cop, and leaving the bodies of gangsters as 'gifts' to fellow crooks he has a grudge against.
The science of forensics was presumaby not as advanced in 1938 as today, but it's hard to believe that bodies dead for hours and repeatedly moved could be passed off as a fresh kill.
So, this is not a movie for a generatl audience, but fans of classic screwball comedies will enjoy its flavor. Robinson is in good form throughout, and perhaps that is the film's ultimate contribution.