The Ghost Talks (1929) - A clunky, weird hotel mystery

If you are the kind of person who enjoys watching movies where the actors seem terrified of the microphone, The Ghost Talks is a real find. It is a 1929 early talkie, so everything moves at the speed of a tired turtle.

It is probably only worth watching if you really care about film history. Or if you like seeing how people thought a mystery should work before the genre got actually smart.

Helen Twelvetrees plays Miriam. She is looking for a million dollars in bonds and looks very worried the whole time.

She goes to this hotel and meets Franklyn, the desk clerk. Franklyn is taking a detective course by mail.

I love that detail. It is so specific and kind of pathetic in a sweet way.

The movie spends a lot of time in the hotel lobby. You can tell they only had a couple of sets to work with.

There are these crooks following Miriam. They are not very scary at all.

They mostly just hang around and wait for her to do something. It feels like they are waiting for the director to yell action even after the scene already started.

One thing that is hard to ignore is Stepin Fetchit. His whole act is... well, it is a lot.

It is that very specific, uncomfortable style of comedy from that era. It really slows down the plot, which was already moving pretty slow to begin with.

There is a scene where Franklyn tries to use his detective skills that made me laugh. Not because it was a good joke, but because of how serious he was about it.

The movie has that hollow sound. You know, where every footstep sounds like a gunshot because they had not figured out sound mixing yet.

It reminded me a bit of the clunkiness in Hail the Woman, though that one had a bit more soul. Or maybe the weird pacing of Three Sinners.

Actually, it is closer to Fog Bound in how it tries to build tension but just ends up feeling foggy. 🌫️

The ghost part of the title is a bit of a letdown. Do not go in expecting a horror movie.

It is more of a who is in the dark kind of thing. Most of the scary moments are just people walking into rooms and looking surprised.

I kept waiting for something big to happen with the bonds. But the movie is more interested in Franklyn being a total goofball.

There is a shot of a door opening slowly that feels like it takes three minutes. I think I checked my phone twice during that one shot.

Still, there is something charming about how clunky it is. It is like watching a baby bird try to fly, but the bird is a giant wooden camera from the twenties.

The way the actors look at the camera is so weird. Its like they are waiting for permission to breathe.

Franklyn is the guy who help Miriam. He is about as intimidating as a wet noodle. 🍜

The sound quality is pretty rough. Everyone sounds like they are talking into a tin can in a basement.

But that is part of the charm, I guess. It is a relic.

If you have seen Forgive and Forget, you know how these early talkies can be a bit of a struggle to get through.

I liked the scene where they talk about the bonds. It is the only time the movie feels like it has a pulse.

Then it goes back to being a slow-motion comedy. It is very confusing what they wanted the vibe to be.

I would not call it a masterpiece. It is barely even a movie by modern standards.

But for a rainy Tuesday when you want to feel like you are in a museum? It is okay.

Just do not expect it to make much sense. Or to move fast.

It just sort of... exists. And then it ends very suddenly.