A Brilliant Conflict

This movie was so-so. It had it's moments, but wasn't the greatest.

Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

Excellent and certainly provocative... If nothing else, the film is a real conversation starter.

I wouldn't feel very safe in the hospital here where Ann Sheridan works as head nurse. Murderers slip easily in and out, and as the drunken security guard peaks in the window, his fate is instantly sealed as well. Yes, it's a dark and stormy night, and as nurse Sheridan, locked in a hospital room, crawls out a window, she comes back in totally drenched and seems to just continue her duties. The murdered patient was strapped in bed with medical radium attached to his chest, and the head of the hospital is accused of the killing. The various subplots involving unfaithful spouses, a detective (Patric Knowles) who sleepwalks in ghastly pajamas and all round unethical behavior at a place of medical healing. Knowles and Sheridan spar somewhat amusingly, but none of the other characters seem to be really well developed even if the drunken security guard and Knowles' valet offer a few funny lines in their brief time on screen. The majority of the plot escaped me within less than 24 hours so I had to research it further to remind myself of what I had just wasted an hour on. Like Busby Berkeley with several dramas the same year, Warner Brothers gave the direction of this non-musical to another dance director on their payroll, Bobby Connelly, showing almost a desperation in which to wrap up their contract since their musical unit was pretty much kaput by 1938.

Don't worry. This won't make you fear hospitals. It is just a tepid variation on the standard romantic mystery/comedy. Hidden radium. Doctors who are maybe good and maybe bad. Servants who may be servants or may be something else. It is truly standard issue. Ann Sheridan's name in the cast list drew me to this. But she is very subdued. Patric Knowles is OK but not very exciting. The supporting cast is OK, too. But just OK. And the plot is adequate. It holds together, though it is at times a bit confusing.The title is intriguing. And the director did some fine work -- but as a writer. It won't kill you but don't expect it to cure anything, either.

It must be difficult to cast support players in a movie where even the stars are B List. Warner's does it's best with stock players like Cliff Clark, Charles Trowbridge, Frank Orth, and John Ridgely. All reliable - all competent. Ann Sheridan as the love interest does well enough. There is something appealing about her. The problem lies with Patric Knowles. For those of us that remember him fondly as Will Scarlett in The Adventures of Robin Hood this movie, as well as so many other efforts, are a disappointment. Warner Bros continued to try to find a niche for him - and failed. They tried him as a pathetic coward and weakling in Five Came Back. They tried him in a half dozen light romantic comedies - no luck. He eventually fizzled into obscure supporting roles. Too bad. He was a genuinely likable guy.Oh, the movie. Well, it's a medical mystery. At 60 minutes running time, it had no choice but to move at a rapid pace. That doesn't make it good, it just makes it short. I happen to be a fan of these potboilers, but there ain't many of us. You have to wonder where they dig these things up from. Buried deep in some film library until some 3rd assistant researcher digs it out. It sits in a cardboard box in some programmers office until he totally runs out of ideas for the 2am slot. He tosses into the que as a filler and nobody notices. Bingo! It makes air and I'm thrilled.This movie was made in 1938 and it really is dated. The men walk around the house in tuxedos and dressing gowns. All the cops have a New York Irish accent and smoke cigars. All rich people had white telephones. Bodies fall out of the closet. The medical procedures make one shudder. For example: A patient has a mystery medical condition and they tape 100K worth of Radium to his chest. As I recall, radium was a miracle cure for everything back then.If I sound like I'm down on this movie, I didn't mean to. Movies like this one couldn't be made anymore. There is more acting and writing talent in this 3 week wonder than you will find in most movies made today. You don't have to take it seriously, but take the time to watch it.

Private Thatcher Hospital is suffering a spate of murders, but THE PATIENT IN ROOM 18 - a young detective recovering from a nervous breakdown - is determined to find the killer.Fast-moving & fun, this is another example of the comedy crime picture that Warner Brothers was so expert at producing almost without effort. Casts & plots could be shuffled endlessly, with very predictable results. While this assembly line approach created few classics, audience enjoyment could usually be assured.Patric Knowles & Ann Sheridan spark the action here. As a convalescing detective & stern head nurse with romantic difficulties in their recent past, they keep the plot racing - especially after murder rears its ugly head. Knowles, who never quite graduated to starring roles in major pictures, shows a fine flair for comedy. Sleepwalking down the street dressed in pajamas & bowler, he is indeed a very droll sight. Sheridan shows flashes of the talent that would eventually make her an important star at Warner Brothers.Unfortunately, the two most potentially interesting characters in the film - Eric Stanley's English valet & Greta Meyer's German cook - are given very little to do. And what about the film's other mystery: just what is so special about Room 18?