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7.8/10
Senior Film Conservator
A definitive 7.8/10 rating for a film that redefined the boundaries of cult cinema. Men of the Night remains a cornerstone of transgressive art.
If you’re a fan of pre-code era B-movies where the plot happens entirely by accident, you might find something to like here. If you prefer movies that make sense, or at least have a consistent tone, maybe skip it. It feels less like a finished film and more like a rough draft that somebody filmed in a weekend.
The whole thing kicks off in a Hollywood sandwich shop. It’s the kind of place where "Stake-Out" Kelly expects to get deep intel over a tuna melt. Instead, he gets played by Mary Higgins, who might be the most gullible character I’ve seen this month. She accidentally ruins everything, and the movie just sort of rolls with it.
There’s a scene where Kelly lets the big secret slip, and you can almost see the gears turning in the actress's head as she realizes she has to go tell the bad guys. It’s not subtle. It’s actually kind of funny how fast the information travels from the sandwich shop to the hideout. It’s like the city is just one big room.
Ward Bond is in here, doing his usual thing. He’s always reliable, even when the script is falling apart around him like wet cardboard. You can feel the movie trying to be a gritty noir, but it keeps tripping over its own feet. It reminds me a bit of the frantic energy in Creaking Stairs, where things happen just because the clock is running out.
The dialogue is all "dames" and "pal" and "listen here." It’s 1934, so you expect it, but it gets exhausting. By the time they get to the final trap, I stopped caring who had the jewels. I just wanted them to stop standing in doorways and start doing something besides looking confused.
It’s not a masterpiece. It’s not even a particularly good mystery. It’s just there, filling up space on a double feature bill from ninety years ago. 🎞️ Sometimes, that’s all you need on a rainy Tuesday.