Calling Philo Vance

1940 1h 2m EN

😐

6.0

MID

★6.0TMDB · 13

CrimeMystery

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Philo is in Vienna working for the US Government to see if Archer Coe is selling aircraft designs to foreign powers. He grabs the plans with Archer's signature, but is captured by police before he can escape. Deported he comes back to America and plans to confront Archer, but Archer is found dead in his locked bedroom with a gun in his hand. While it looks like a suicide, Vance knows better and the coroner finds that Archer has been shot, hit with a blunt instrument and stabbed - making suicide unlikely. But Vance is on the case and is looking to see if government secrets have been sold and who has murdered Coe. This is a remake of "The Kennel Murder Case" using aircraft designs and espionage instead of Chinese porcelain and dog shows.

“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”

WhatsApp X Facebook Telegram

Cast

James Stephenson
Philo Vance
Margot Stevenson
Hilda Lake
Henry O'Neill
Markham
Edward Brophy
Ryan
Sheila Bromley
Doris Delafield
Ralph Forbes
Tom McDonald
Donald Douglas
Philip Wrede
Martin Kosleck
Gamble

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: William Clemens
Writers: Tom Reed
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

Tight 62-minute runtime — shorter than most television pilots.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

86 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

CINEMA

Did you know

Part of the "Philo Vance Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by William Clemens, shot by L. William O'Connell. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Louis Lindsay shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

James Stephenson and Margot Stevenson and Henry O'Neill carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0032299 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

Only 13 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

William Clemens directs. L. William O'Connell behind the camera. Louis Lindsay cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Tight 62-minute runtime — shorter than most television pilots.
286 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
3Part of the "Philo Vance Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
4Directed by William Clemens, shot by L. William O'Connell. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Editor Louis Lindsay shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6James Stephenson and Margot Stevenson and Henry O'Neill carry the top of the cast.
7IMDB entry: tt0032299 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
8Only 13 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

The technical file

Cinematography: L. William O'Connell
Editing: Louis Lindsay
Costume design: Howard Shoup
Runtime: 62 min · 1h 2m
Status: Released
Original language: EN
IMDB: Calling Philo Vance (1940)

Part of

Philo Vance Collection

The movie adaptions of the S. S. Van Dine novels featuring the detective Philo Vance, starring various actors in the lead role.

Also by

William Clemens

Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2023-04-01
★ 6/10
This is an adequate afternoon B-feature that probably served more as a warning against fifth-columnists than it actually entertained anyone. It all centres around attempts by the Axis powers to obtain access to the designs of "Archer Coe" (the briefest of appearances from Richard Kipling). Now he has an exclusive arrangement with the Americans so when he is found murdered, it falls to the wily, suspicions and tenacious "Vance" (James Stephenson) to find out who the killers were and on whose malevolent behalf they were working? Did they manage to steal his secret plans? Now this is just a substantial reworking of "The Kennel Murder Case" (1933) - even down to whopping great chunks of the script being transferred, albeit updated, to allow for it's WWII scenario. Although all pretty lightweight and devoid of any real sense of jeopardy, Stephenson is actually quite engaging and there is a decent supporting effort from Edward Trophy ("Ryan") delivering some fun to this rather dry, procedural, crime drama. It's only an hour, and if you like the genre then there isn't really anything not to like - or memorable - about this.

Production companies

Who made it

Warner Bros. Pictures
US

Key crew

EditorLouis Lindsay
Art DirectionTed Smith
EditorBen G. Liss
Costume DesignHoward Shoup
SoundCharles Lang
NovelS.S. Van Dine

Themes & keywords

What it's about, really

philo vance

Release history · US

When it landed

Premiere1940-01-27· Los Angeles, California
Theatrical1940-02-03