The Whistler **½ (1944, Richard Dix, Gloria Stuart, J Carrol Naish) – Classic Movie Review 13,237

The Whistler (1944).

William Castle’s enjoyable 1944 mystery film noir The Whistler, the first of Columbia Pictures’ eight Whistler films based on the radio series, stars Richard Dix, Gloria Stuart and J Carrol Naish.

Director William Castle’s enjoyable 1944 American mystery film noir The Whistler is the first of Columbia Pictures’ eight Whistler films based on the radio series. It stars Richard Dix, Gloria Stuart and J Carrol Naish.

Richard Dix stars as industrialist Earl C Conrad, who is so consumed with terminal grief and guilt after failing to rescue his wife at sea that he arranges for an unknown hit man to kill him somehow and within days, before the next Friday. But then he learns good news from his loving secretary Alice Walker ( Gloria Stuart) that a telegram has from the Red Cross saying that his wife is still alive in Japan, so he tries to call off the hit. But Lefty Vigran (Don Costello), the man he made the deal to arrange a hitman to kill him, has himself been killed in a shootout with the police in a back alleyway immediately after their meeting in a bar. So Mr Conrad doesn’t know who the hitman is, and the killer (J Carrol Naish) relentlessly stalks Conrad, obsessed with carrying out his mission.

The Whistler is not bad, though held back by its mini budget, tiny cramped sets and studio bound look. But William Castle films swiftly, smartly and rather imaginatively given the circumstances, making it quite tense and suspenseful, and the cinematography by James S Brown Jr shows flashes of flair and style.

Richard Dix is solid and convincing enough, suffering intensely, though he looks a bit old for the part, and he is definitely a graduate of the silent movie school of acting. Don Costello is good, and so are a couple of other character actors: Alan Dinehart as Gorman, Robert Emmett Keane as Charlie McNear, and Joan Woodbury as Toni Vigran, all in nice and quirky character roles. But J Carrol Naish steals the show as the dogged killer, with plenty to do in a quite creepy and chilly performance, initially deciding to try to frighten Mr Conrad to death by continually appearing from the shadows, before preferring more traditional methods.

The Whistler format is okay (Otto Forrest as the voice of The Whistler) but it is a tiny bit smug and irritating and it kind of gets in the way of enjoyment. The ironic destiny stuff is laid on too heavily to feel clever. Nevertheless, overall, especially with so much going on in just 60 minutes, The Whistler is enjoyable B movie noir fare that makes you want to check out the sequel: The Marked Man (1944), also directed by Castle.

Otto Forrest (uncredited) is the voice of The Whistler.

The plot is reused to great effect in I Hired a Contract Killer.

The Whistler series

The Whistler (1944) directed by William Castle, The Marked Man (1944) directed by Castle, The Power of the Whistler (1945), Voice of the Whistler (1945) directed by Castle, Mysterious Intruder (1946) directed by Castle, The Secret of the Whistler (1946), The Thirteenth Hour (1947), The Return of the Whistler (1948).

The Whistler is an American radio mystery drama series that ran from May 16, 1942, until September 22, 1955, on the US West Coast regional CBS radio network.

© Derek Winnert 2024 – Classic Movie Review 13,237

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