A Shot in the Dark (1935 film)
{{short description|1935 film by Charles Lamont}}
{{Infobox film
| name = A Shot in the Dark
| image = "A_Shot_in_the_Dark"_(1935).jpg
| caption =
| director = Charles Lamont
| producer = George R. Batcheller
| writer = Charles Belden
| based_on = {{based on|The Dartmouth Murders
1929 novel|Clifford Orr}}
| narrator =
| starring = Charles Starrett
Robert Warwick
Marion Shilling
| music = Abe Meyer
| cinematography = M.A. Anderson
| editing = Roland D. Reed
| studio = Chesterfield Pictures
| distributor = Chesterfield Pictures
| released = {{Film date|1935|02|01}}
| runtime = 69 minutes
| country = United States
| language = English
}}
A Shot in the Dark is a 1935 American mystery film directed by Charles Lamont and starring Charles Starrett, Robert Warwick and Marion Shilling.{{cite web|url=http://www.allmovie.com/movie/a-shot-in-the-dark-v44503|title=A Shot in the Dark (1935) - Trailers, Reviews, Synopsis, Showtimes and Cast - AllMovie|work=AllMovie}} Produced by Chesterfield Pictures, it is an adaptation of the novel The Dartmouth Murders by Clifford Orr.
Plot
A college student (Charles Starrett) discovers his roommate's body hanging from a window and calls the police. What at first looks like suicide turns out to be murder. While a police investigation is ongoing, more students are killed.
Cast
- Charles Starrett as Kenneth "Ken" Harris
- Robert Warwick as Joseph Harris
- Edward Van Sloan as Prof. Bostwick
- Marion Shilling as Jean Coates
- Helen Jerome Eddy as Miss Lottie Case
- Doris Lloyd as Lucille Coates
- James Bush as Byron Coates / John Meseraux
- Julian Madison as Charlie Penlon
- Eddie Tamblyn as Bill Smart
- Ralph Brooks as Sam Anderson
- Robert McKenzie as Sheriff
- John Davidson as Prof. Brand
- Herbert Bunston as College President
- George Morrell as Deputy Ab Barber
- Broderick O'Farrell as Dr. Howell
- Jane Keckley as Bostwick's Housekeeper
Critical reception
The New York Times wrote, "A Shot in the Dark, which pictures a trilogy of murders on a rural college campus, telegraphs its punches in a way that may seem insignificant to Chesterfield Productions, Inc., but is as good as a confession to us amateur gumshoes...a decided absence of liveliness both in the writing and the playing";{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9503E4D81139E33ABC4A51DFB366838E629EDE|title=Movie Review - A Shot in the Dark - THE SCREEN - NYTimes.com|work=The New York Times}} whereas Fantastic Movie Musings and Ramblings noted, "a very good mystery...It does have some problems, particularly in having a rather stiff and static presentation, but outside of that, this is one of the more pleasant discoveries I've made."{{cite web|url=http://www.scifilm.org/musing1127.html|title=Fantastic Movie Musings & Ramblings - A SHOT IN THE DARK (1935)|author=Fantastic Movie Musings & Ramblings|work=scifilm.org|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402122912/http://www.scifilm.org/musing1127.html|archive-date=April 2, 2015|df=mdy-all}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{IMDb title|id=0026991|title=A Shot in the Dark}}
- [https://www.allmovie.com/movie/a-shot-in-the-dark-am78437 A Shot in the Dark at AllMovie]
- {{tcmdb title|id=90017}}
- [http://www.afi.com/members/catalog/DetailView.aspx?s=&Movie=2527 The AFI Catalog of Feature Films:A Shot in the Dark]
- {Internet Archive film|id=AShotInTheDarkIPOD|name=A Shot in the Dark}}
{{Charles Lamont}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2015}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shot in the Dark (1935 film), A}}
Category:American mystery films
Category:Films based on American novels
Category:Films directed by Charles Lamont
Category:American black-and-white films
Category:Chesterfield Pictures films
Category:Films set in universities and colleges
Category:1930s English-language films
Category:English-language mystery films
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