The Falcon in San Francisco **½ (1945, Tom Conway, Rita Corday, Edward Brophy, Sharyn Moffett, Fay Helm, Robert Armstrong) – Classic Movie Review 3217

‘The lure of loveliness and the greed for gold lead four to fearful death…as the Falcon grapples with his most merciless foe!’

Michael Arlen’s débonair detective The Falcon (Tom Conway) investigates possible silk smuggling in San Francisco in this 1945 above par-for-the-course entry for the Falcon series, which began in 1941 with The Gay Falcon. It is number 11 in the original 13 Falcon movies.

The Falcon is on holiday by rail to San Francisco his Brooklyn-born buddy Goldie Locke (Edward Brophy) when he witnesses the murder of wealthy little girl Annie Marshall (Sharyn Moffett)’s nurse. Naturally, he tries to help Annie but is arrested for kidnapping her, however then bailed out of jail by a mysterious woman called Doreen Temple (Fay Helm). Then he investigates, uncovering silk smuggling, involving a steamship called the SS Citadel and a relationship between an ex-bootlegger named Duke Monette (Robert Armstrong) and a wealthy shipping heiress.

The satisfyingly labyrinthine plot, the good, on-form cast and the views of 1945 wartime San Francisco, plus the direction of cult name Joseph H Lewis, are the main, very considerable assets of a decent little mystery movie.

Also in the cast are Rita Corday as Joan Marshall, Carl Kent as Rickey, George Holmes as Dalman, John Mylong as Peter Vantine /Carl Dudley, Ralph Dunn, Harry Strang and Jason Robards Sr.

It is produced by Maurice Geraghty, in his final film in the series, after which RKO Pictures greatly reduced budgets and location shooting was largely abandoned.

© Derek Winnert 2015 Classic Movie Review 3217

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