The Bishop Murder Case: Rathbone is great, the movie is a bit weird

If you like old-school detective stories where everyone wears a tuxedo to dinner, you should probably watch this tonight. It is a bit stiff because it was made in 1930, but it has a real charm to it.

People who hate talky movies with no action will definitely find this boring. It is mostly people in rooms looking suspicious at each other. 🏹

The whole thing starts with a guy named Robin being shot through the heart with an arrow. It is literally a play on 'Who Killed Cock Robin,' which is a bit cheesy but I kind of liked it.

Basil Rathbone plays Philo Vance here. He is very fast with his lines, almost like he is trying to finish the movie early so he can go home.

He is much more of a know-it-all here than in something like The Cinderella Man. He walks into every room like he already read the script and knows who did it. ♟️

There is this one scene in the archery range where the characters are just standing in a straight line. It looks so much like a stage play that you expect them to start bowing to the camera.

The chess bishop left at the crime scene is very small. I actually missed it the first time because the lighting is a bit flickery in that shot.

It is definitely more atmospheric than Wild Oranges, even if the sets look like they are made of thin cardboard. You can almost hear the actors' shoes squeaking on the floorboards.

One of the suspects has a mustache that is so thin it looks like it was drawn on with a pencil. I spent five minutes just staring at it instead of listening to the clues. 🧐

The nursery rhyme theme gets pretty dark for a movie this old. It reminds me of the tension in Kiss of Death, though not quite as polished.

There is a reaction shot of a girl crying that goes on for about ten seconds too long. It starts off sad and then just becomes awkward to watch.

I noticed the sound quality is a bit rough, with a constant hiss in the background. It makes it feel like you are listening to a secret recording from a hundred years ago.

The way they explain the chess moves is actually pretty clever. Even if you don't play chess, you get the feeling that the killer is playing a very annoying game with the police.

If you are looking for something with a faster pace like Bond of Fear, this is not it. This movie takes its sweet time to get anywhere.

The ending happens so fast it almost feels like they ran out of film. One minute they are talking about clues, and the next minute the killer is being hauled away. 🚔

It is worth a watch just to see Rathbone before he became the world's most famous Sherlock. He is very young and very intense here.

Overall, it is a decent way to spend an hour if you like dusty old mysteries. Just don't expect it to make total sense by the time the credits roll.