Review of Doomed to Die (1940) by Kevin M. W — 20 Jun 2014

They traced the bullet through the body into the head.

Dick Fleming wants to propose to his long time girlfriend and daughter of rich and powerful Cyrus Wentworth. Cyrus hates the idea and immediately kicks Dick out of his office after hearing the proposal. Just as Dick is about to leave a gunshot rings and Cyrus is dead. The police immediately arrest Dick and charge him with murder. A local newspaper reporter feels the event is too convenient, especially after a recent tragedy involving the Wentworth family. The report calls in Detective Wong to do some digging and see if someone else may be responsible.

"Are you butting into my business again?".

"Sure.".

William Neigh, director of Dr. Wong, Detective; Mr. Wise Guy; The Ape; Desert Nights; Black Dragons; Beauty and the Bandit; The Mystery of Mr. Wong; Mr. Wong in Chinatown; and The 13 Man, delivers Doomed to Die. The storyline for this picture is below average and the plot unfolds in kind of a slow and methodical fashion (which is saying something for a film with a 68 minute run time). The acting is solid and the cast includes Boris Karloff, Henry Brandon, Marjorie Reynolds, Grant Withers, and William Stelling.

"You've never done anything in your life without an ulterior motive.".

I grabbed this movie off Netflix because it starred the wonderful Boris Karloff. I have never been a huge fan of his run as Detective Wong and this did little to change my mind. They try to depict him as an Asian Sherlock Holmes of sorts and despite his charm and charisma in the series, the character just doesn't work for me. I do enjoy watching Karloff, but this isn't his best work.

"The homicide squad will be the new used car squad.".

Grade: C-.