Feature1934·70m·5.9

Crime Without Passion

CrimeDrama

Caddish lawyer Lee Gentry is going out with Katy Costello, but carrying on an affair with dancer Carmen Brown. When he wants to end the dalliance with Carmen, she is so distraught that she becomes suicidal. Seizing the gun from Carmen, he accidentally shoots her, and thinking she's dead, concocts a series of increasingly outlandish alibis to cover his tracks under the guidance of a ghostly apparition that is his alter ego.

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Cast

Claude Rains

Lee Gentry

Margo

Carmen Brown

Whitney Bourne

Katy Costello

Stanley Ridges

Eddie White

Leslie Adams

State's Attorney O'Brien

Dorothy Bradshaw

Jury Member (uncredited)

Fanny Brice

Woman in Hotel Lobby (uncredited)

Jack Carr

Defendant (uncredited)

Esther Dale

Miss Keeley (uncredited)

Fraye Gilbert

Jury Member (uncredited)

Greta Granstedt

Della (uncredited)

Helen Hayes

Woman in Hotel Lobby (uncredited)

Ben Hecht

Court Interviewer with Pipe (uncredited)

Charles Anthony Hughes

Man (uncredited)

Charles Kennedy

Police Lt. Norton (uncredited)

Charles MacArthur

Second Interviewer (uncredited)

Cornelius MacSunday

Gentry's Butler (uncredited)

Marjorie Main

Backstage Wardrobe Woman (uncredited)

Marion Martin

Theatre Cashier (uncredited)

Fuller Mellish

Judge (uncredited)

Details

Status
Released
Original language
English
Languages
English
Budget
Revenue
Age rating
Quality
4K UHD · HDR10 · Dolby Vision
Production
Hecht-MacArthur ProductionsParamount Pictures

Crew

Director

Ben Hecht

Writers

Ben Hecht, Ben Hecht, Charles MacArthur, James L. Shute

Lee Garmes

Director of Photography

Frank Tours

Original Music Composer

Arthur Ellis

Editor

Gallery

Reviews

CinemaSerf

6/13/2022

6.0

Claude Rains is good in this as the smug, intelligent lawyer "Gentry" who prides himself on being able to get even the most odious of criminals acquitted. That ensures that just about every one in law enforcement loathes him - until, that is, serendipity strikes a blow as he gets very jealous about the antics of girlfriend "Carmen" (Margo) and is soon having to establish an alibi for himself - and things really take a turn for the bizarre. Indeed, that's probably the word for much of this production. The opening scenes are quirky, to say the least - though it does revert to a better trodden path as it progresses. The writing is basic, and it's delivery frequently quite staccato in style which doesn't help the pace much, but it is still enjoyable to see the star playing well.