Here's a long post to share some of the best Old Dark House and
comedy/mystery movies that I've found (both from best of lists and my
faves). My hope is other fans of this sub-genre will share any similar
movies they've found. I've added some comedy/mystery movies without the
old dark house theme as well as old dark house mysteries without the
comedy.
The Bat Whispers (1930)
Also the original 1926 silent version, The Bat, as well as the
1959 Vincent Price remake. These almost always appear on the best of
lists, but I don't remember much comedy.
The Old Dark House (1932)
Directed by James Whale. Again usually on the best of lists.
Almost too dark to be called a comedy.
The Cat and the Canary (1939)
Bob Hope in his prime and the lovely Paulette Goddard. This one
really jumpstarts the sub-genre for me.
The Ghost Breakers (1940)
Reunites Bob Hope and Paulette Goddard, and adds the extremely
talented Willie Best. This one defines the sub-genre for me.* [I'm
ignoring the inferior Lewis & Martin remake.]
Hold That Ghost (1941)
Abbott & Costello. Joan Davis is funnier paired with Lou than Bud is.
The Smiling Ghost (1941)
Wayne Morris is better than sidekick for Willie Best than Milton
Berle, but he's no Bob Hope. I would have loved if Bob was paired with
Willie for this one and The Whispering Ghosts below.
The Black Cat (1941)
Often makes the best of lists. I haven't watched this one yet. I
don't see it in the newsgroup, so I'll post it.
Topper Returns (1941)
The third and last film in the series, and this one is a really
good dark old house mystery/comedy.
The Hidden Hand (1942)
Haven't seen this one yet, but it's next on my list. Not as highly
rated but it has Willie Best, so I'm in!
The Whispering Ghosts (1942)
Interesting take -- a dark old ship comedy. It has Willie Best (a
plus in my book), but I REALLY don't like Uncle Miltie's performance. I
almost applauded when the guy decked him.**
Murder, He Says (1945)
With the incredibly versatile Fred MacMurray AND a callback to The
Ghost Breakers. :) Impressive camera SFX work with the twins schtick,
especially the fight scene. My second favorite movie in this sub-genre
with The Cat and the Canary as a close third place. The chase scene in
the cellar is pure Scooby-Doo. More physical comedy in this instance as
opposed to the verbal comedy in Ghost Breakers, but it's easy to see
what they were trying to pattern after in the original cartoon series.
House on Haunted Hill (1959)
Vincent Price. Again often makes the best of lists, but I haven't
watched it yet. Probably the end of the genre if not for...
Clue (1985)
OK, this may be my favorite. Practically the whole movie is
exquisitely quotable.*** It's a gorgeous period piece and a wonderful
homage, but it almost seems like a different category because of the
era in which it was made. Thus my incongruous ranking.
Comedy/Mystery without the old house theme:
The entire Thin Man series.
'Nuff said. You can't go wrong with any movie with William Powell
and/or Myrna Loy.
The Ex-Mrs. Bradford (1936)
As good as or better than the Thin Man movies IMHO.
A Tragedy at Midnight (1942)
Margaret Lindsay is as adorable as ever. It was good to see Keye
Luke too, although the racism of his role was uncomfortable.
A Night to Remember (1942)
No hidden panels or secret passages but a great mixture of comedy
and murder mystery. And Charlie Chan! (well, not really)
The Body Disappears (1941)
No actual dead bodies, but a great Willie Best vehicle.
Footsteps in the Dark (1941)
Errol Flynn(!) in what appears to be a Thin Man "inspired"
vehicle. A series is hinted at the end, but never realized.
OK, so what movies did I miss? I really look forward to your feedback.
I think most of these are posted, but I can post any of these if
needed. I'm looking for a better copy of One Body Too Many (1944) if
any one has a different version than the one on archive.org.
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Honorable mentions:
Hildegard Withers Series:
The Penguin Pool Murder (1932)
Murder on the Blackboard (1934)
Murder on a Honeymoon (1935)
Murder on a Bridle Path (1936)
Like Charlie Chan, more mystery than comedy, so not included in
the main section. I can only recommend the first four movies. Zasu
Pitts was a horrible choice for the role.
One Body Too Many (1944)
Jack Haley of Wizard of Oz fame. Light on comedy to my memory.
Dead Men Tell (1941)
All the Charlie Chan mysteries had some comedy relief to one
extent or another (normally via his children), but Victor Sen Yung's
performance seems just a little more comedic in this one. Too bad he
was never billed as a true co-star. The creepy atmosphere and
claustrophobic old ship evoke the theme for me although I don't
remember any secret passages.
Murder by Invitation (1941), Who Killed Aunt Maggie (1940), The
Ghost Walks (1934)
No actual comedy, but decent old dark house mysteries.
Ten Little Indians/Then There Were None (1945)
Classic! Again no comedy, but a great Agatha Christie mystery:
stranded on an island in an old dark house.
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* This one is pure Scooby-Doo to me. :)
Larry Lawrence: She's just trying to scare us.
Alex: Well she's wasting her time, 'cause we're scared already.
Larry Lawrence: Listen, you stay there, and if a couple a fellas
come runnin' down the stairs in a few minutes, let the first one go.
That'll be me.
Alex: If somebody passes you, that'll be me.
Larry Lawrence: Must have been a frog in my throat.
Alex: It's better than havin' a knife in it.
** While the racism in these old movies is a unfortunate sign of the
times in which they were made, Bob Hope made the jokes seem less
mean-spirited than Milton Berle did. Bob's schtick is more
self-effacing. I can't help but think this would have been great with
Hope & Best.
*** Man I could quote this movie all day long, but here are a few:
Mrs. White: Well, it's a matter of life after death. Now that he's
dead, I have a life.
Wadsworth: Professor Plum, you were once a professor of psychiatry
specializing in helping paranoid and homicidal lunatics suffering from
delusions of grandeur.
Professor Plum: Yes, but now I work for the United Nations.
Wadsworth: So your work has not changed.
Miss Scarlet: Maybe there is life after death.
Mrs. White: Life after death is as improbable as sex after marriage!
Professor Plum: What are you afraid of, a fate worse than death?
Mrs. Peacock: No, just death, isn't that enough?
Colonel Mustard: Wadsworth, am I right in thinking there's nobody
else in this house?
Wadsworth: Um... no.
Colonel Mustard: Then there is someone else in this house?
Wadsworth: Sorry, I said "no" meaning "yes."
Colonel Mustard: "No" meaning "yes?" Look, I want a straight
answer, is there someone else, or isn't there, yes, or no?
Wadsworth: No.
Colonel Mustard: No there is, or no there isn't?
Wadsworth: Yes.
Mrs. White: [shatters glass] PLEASE!
Colonel Mustard: How many husbands have you had?
Mrs. White: Mine or other women's?
Colonel Mustard: Yours.
Mrs. White: Five.
Colonel Mustard: Five?
Mrs. White: Yes, just the five. Husbands should be like Kleenex:
soft, strong and disposable.
Colonel Mustard: You lure men to their deaths like a spider with flies.
Mrs. White: Flies are where men are most vulnerable.
Colonel Mustard: Right!
Wadsworth: [shouting] That's what we're trying to find out! We're
trying to find out *who* killed him, and *where*, and with *what*!
Professor Plum: There's no need to shout!
Wadsworth: [shouting louder] I'm not shouting!
[Guests stare at him pointedly]
Wadsworth: [shouting] All right, I am! I'm shouting, I'm shouting,
I'm shout...
[candlestick falls from above and hits him on the head]
Wadsworth: You see? Like the Mounties, we always get our man.
Mr. Green: Mrs. Peacock was a man?
[Colonel Mustard slaps Mr. Green, who turns to get slapped by Wadsworth]
[OK. This is a LOOOONNNG one, but so worth it.]
Wadsworth: Mrs. White, you've been paying our friend, the
blackmailer, ever since your husband died under, shall we say,
mysterious circumstances?
Miss Scarlet: Ah!
[laughs]
Mrs. White: Why is that funny?
Miss Scarlet: I see! That's why he was lying on his back, in his coffin.
Mrs. White: I didn't kill him.
Colonel Mustard: Then why are you paying the blackmailer?
Mrs. White: I dont want a scandal, do I? We had had a very
humiliating public confrontation. He was deranged. He was
[points to head]
Mrs. White: a lunatic! He didn't actually seem to like me very
much; he had threatened to kill me in public.
Miss Scarlet: Why would he wanna kill you in public?
Wadsworth: I think she meant he threatened, in public, to kill her.
[rolls eyes]
Miss Scarlet: Oh. Was that his final word on the matter?
Mrs. White: Being killed is pretty final, wouldn't you say?
Wadsworth: And yet, he was the one who died, not you, Mrs. White, not you!
Miss Scarlet: What did he do for a living?
Mrs. White: He was a scientist, nuclear physics.
Miss Scarlet: What was he like?
Mrs. White: He was always a rather stupidly optimistic man. I
mean, I'm afraid it came as a great shock to hime when he died, but, he
was found dead at home. His head had been cut off, and so had his,
uh... you *know*.
[Colonel Mustard, Professor Plum, and Mr. Green cross legs]
Mrs. White: I had been out all evening at the movies.
Miss Scarlet: Do you miss him?
Mrs. White: Well, it's a matter of life after death. Now that he's
dead, I have a life.
Wadsworth: But, he was your second husband. Your first husband
also disappeared.
Mrs. White: But that was his job. He was an illusionist.
Wadsworth: But he never reappeared!
Mrs. White: [admittedly] He wasn't a very good illusionist.
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