The Falcon Strikes Back **½ (1943, Tom Conway, Harriet Hilliard, Jane Randolph, Edgar Kennedy, Cliff Edwards, Rita Corday, Wynne Gibson, Cliff Clark, Edward Gargan) – Classic Movie Review 3216

Michael Arlen’s débonair detective Tom Lawrence aka The Falcon (Tom Conway) investigates when he’s framed for a banker’s killing in this 1943 slightly above par-for-the-course entry for the Falcon series, which began in 1941 with The Gay Falcon. It’s the fifth of the original 13 Falcon movies.

The good cast plus sharp and pacy direction by Edward Dmytryk helps a minor but interesting little mystery story to be completely involving.

As usual, Tom Lawrence has been framed for something and is hiding out somewhere while investigating the real culprit. In this case, he’s been framed for stealing war bonds and is hiding out at a country resort. It’s there that he discovers Mia Bruger (Rita Corday) has been murdered. It turns out she framed him and there’s a big war bonds racket.

Also in the satisfyingly quirky cast are Harriet Hilliard as Gwynne Gregory, Jane Randolph as Marcia Brooks, Edgar Kennedy as Smiley Dugan, Cliff Edwards (filling in for Allen Jenkins) as The Falcon’s buddy Goldie Locke, Wynne Gibson as Geraldine H. Lipton, Erford Gage as Rickey Davis, André Charlot as Bruno Steffen, Richard Loo as Jerry, Cliff Clark as Inspector Timothy Donovan and Edward Gargan as Detective Bates.

Gerald Geraghty and Edward Dein write the screenplay based on a story by Stuart Palmer, and the producer is Geraghty’s brother, Maurice.

© Derek Winnert 2015 Classic Movie Review 3216

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