Movie Review: Inside Information (1934)
Synopsis: Investor broker Lloyd Wilson's reputation is tarnished when $200,000 in bonds are stolen from his office, rumors circulate about it being an inside job and two private detectives are hired to follow him. His dog, Tarzan, knows who the real thief is, however, and does his part to bring that man and his gang to justice.
Who's in it? The movie stars Rex Lease, Marion Shilling, Tarzan, Philo McCullough and Henry Hull.
Review: I started watching Inside Information this morning believing (because of an inaccurate description) it was the 1939 film starring June Lang and Dick Foran. Several minutes into the movie, I realized that wasn't the case but, intrigued, I watched it anyway. Overall, I thought it was an entertaining choice.
As far as the main plot goes, it was expectedly simple. There's zero doubt who is behind the theft of the bonds or about Lloyd's (Lease) innocence and there aren't many twists and turns. Instead, it was a basic film that focused mostly on its real star, Tarzan, and when he wasn't tracking down the criminals, gave him plenty of screen time to show off his other tricks.
That said, the movie also wasn't boring. There are multiple fist fights and Tarzan's life is put in danger more than once. Plus, while the audience knew Durand (MuCullough) was the real thief, Tarzan still had to find a way to prove it. Though, to be fair, I did think it was kind of odd no humans thought of Durand as a suspect from the start considering he was in the room when the stolen bonds were being discussed.
While not getting a ton of screen time together since it was, of course, mostly about the dog, I did think the chemistry between Lloyd and his girlfriend, Anne (Shilling) was solid. I loved how she stood by him even when others thought he was guilty and his insistence he prove his innocence, so he'd be able to marry her. Had Tarzan not been the star, I would think they would have made a good crime-solving team.
My only real complaint about the movie is the final fight at the end. The timing just seemed off throughout with the human actors clearly trying to set things up for the canine actor and a police officer who must have taken a lunch break or something because it took him an eternity to enter that house while Lloyd and Tarzan were fighting off the crooks by themselves even though he arrived at the same time. In all honesty, the movie might have been better without it.
Final Opinion: It wasn't the movie I thought I was watching but it still proved to be an OK choice. At minimum, if you love dogs, it's a good pick.
My Grade: B
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Here are some reviews of other movies about dogs:
Movie Review: The Case of the Howling Dog (1934)
Movie Review: A Puppy for Christmas (2016)
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