Movie Review: Just Off Broadway (1942)

Synopsis: When Lillian Hubbard goes on trial for the murder of her fiancée, Harley Forsythe, private investigator Michael Shayne is assigned to the jury. After a key witness is killed by a knife thrower in the courtroom, Hubbard looks guilty to some jurors. Shayne, however, believes she's innocent and, after swiping the knife before it could be taken as evidence, sneaks out of his hotel room to conduct his own investigation with the help of newspaper reporter Judy Taylor. Complicating things is photographer Roy Higgins, who is determined to catch Shayne in the act, something that could result in the detective being sent to jail.

Who's in it? The movie stars Lloyd Nolan, Marjorie Weaver, Phil Silvers, Janis Carter and Joan Valerie.

Review: I was feeling a bit tired and called it an early night last night. Before going to bed, I looked for a film to watch this morning and picked Just Off Broadway because it was the first one that popped up that looked halfway decent. After seeing it, I can describe it as a good choice.

The idea of a juror sneaking out to conduct his own investigation at a murder trial was both intriguing and unique and the movie executed it well. Shayne (Nolan) was smart and slippery while his reluctant partner in crime, Judy (Weaver) added a bit of sexual chemistry and comedy to the mix. Meanwhile, Phil Silver's Higgins added a constant obstacle once he realized what Shayne was doing and tried to get photographic evidence against the detective.

Even without the threat Higgins posed, the circumstances of Shayne's investigation complicated things for him. He had to avoid being found out at all times, something that became especially difficult when the courtroom knife thrower (Alexander Lockwood) was found dead and he was nearly arrested for the murder. Plus, even if he did find evidence proving Hubbard's (Carter) innocence, presenting that evidence to the right people meant confessing to his own crime.

The mystery itself was intriguing as well. Both because of the complexity of his investigation and the limited movie runtime (65 minutes), I figured the real killer would be fairly obvious and it would mostly just be Shayne trying to track down enough evidence to prove it. Instead, the film has a nice surprise twist ending, revealing a killer I hadn't even thought to suspect. In fact, the courtroom surprise was something I would have expected to see in a Perry Mason movie.

I also found I liked the ending, which was both funny and reasonably realistic, though some of the comments Shayne ends up making to Judy at the end were probably a little dated, at least from a comedic point of view. Considering many movies like this just don't know how to end things on a high note, I was glad to see it.

Final Opinion: I picked it out in a hurry and wasn't sure what to expect from it, but the film was enjoyable to watch and one I'd recommend.

My Grade: A

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