The Fatal Hour (1940)

The Fatal Hour (1940). 1h 8m | Approved

“The Mr. Wong series borrows somewhat from the Torchy Blane series at Warner Bros., i.e. feisty female reporter annoying the police officer/boyfriend, but also key to solving the crime. A comment was made elsewhere about that character here having a u0026quot;Lois Laneu0026quot; moment. Torchy Blane was allegedly the inspiration for the Lois Lane character of Superman comics.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eA humorous, but probably unintentional, mistake shows up early in the film when Boris Karloffu0026#39;s darkening makeup is forgotten on his neck, giving him a two-tone head.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eAlthough one can disparage Karloff for these films, keep in mind that film actors then, as now, need and want work. There are plenty of other well-experienced actors appearing in the Mr. Wong films, whom you can see in better films at better studios in the 1930s, or even in later films.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eAlthough Karloff was making u0026quot;Bu0026quot; films at Monogram and Columbia around this time, at least he had an u0026quot;upu0026quot; blip in his career when he played a major role in u0026quot;Arsenic and Old Laceu0026quot; on Broadway from 1941 to 1944.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThis film is no worse than the formulaic TV series we have now, both comedy and drama, TV now being todayu0026#39;s equivalent of the u0026quot;Bu0026quot; movies of yesterday.”