Detetive Particular

1939 is considered the top year for classic films from Hollywood with the release of Gone With the Wind, The Wizard of Oz, The Adventures of Robin Hood and countless others, however while all those masterworks were being created it's good to remember that the studios were still cranking out B programmers to fill the bill and this is as good an example of that as any.

Jane Wyman having worked her way through bits and supporting roles has one of her first leads here as Jinx Winslow, girl detective. She's cute and sprightly and in an interesting contrast she has a few scenes with the ill fated Gloria Dickson, a promising contract player until her sad death a few years later in a house fire at just 28. In their scenes the blush of stardom is all over Jane, not only is she far more animated than Gloria but she registers on screen in a way that Dickson does not and never would. A clear demonstration of star quality, Jane is vibrant whereas Gloria is flat, it doesn't help her though that she's made up in the most overdone and unflattering hair and makeup.

As for the rest of the movie and the cast, the story is nothing that hasn't been done a million times but it moves at a good clip and that blank wall of an actor Dick Foran takes up space like he always does, how he worked so much is a mystery