Customer Reviews

Dick Tracy's Dilemma [VHS]

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Originated by Chester Gould's syndicated comic strip, Dick Tracy has been a durable cinematic character with appearances ranging from 1930s serials to an over-hyped 1990 blockbuster-style motion picture starring Warren Beatty and Madonna--but the character's film appearances are perhaps most fondly recalled from the 1940s RKO Pictures series. Written with stacco dialogue and seldom running more than an hour, they were welcome "B" movies at almost every matinee.

Clocking in at exactly sixty minutes, DILEMMA plays out a fast clip. A fur heist and insurance scam turns deadly when a criminal employs "The Claw"--and not only does the movie rack up an impressive body count, it has considerably more suspense than the usual Dick Tracy flick. Ralph Byrd, who frequently played Dick Tracy, is quite good, but the edge of this film comes from the supporting cast: Jack Lambeth's the Claw is memorably dark; Ian Keith, a noted stage actor whose film credits include QUEEN CHRISTINA, scores as the comic Vitamin Flintheart; and Bernadene Hayes proves memorable in the brief role of Longshot Lillie. The cast is very nicely rounded out by Kay Christopher as a particularly appeal Tess Trueheart and such character actors as Lyle Latell, William B. Davidson, Tony Barrett, and Tom Keene.

High art it isn't, but DICK TRACY'S DILEMMA is fun in and of itself, fast moving, well acted, and well director by "B" movie workhorse John Rawlins. Certainly among the better outings for the famous character, it's very entertaining. Recommended for Dick Tracy fans everywhere.

GFT, Amazon Reviewer

"Dick Tracy's Dilemma" is a pretty standard 1940s potboiler. Starring Ralphy Byrd as Tracy, the famed detective faces "The Claw" is this entry of the series. The movie is nothing special, but it's a fast paced, reasonably entertaining time-waster.
The no-frills DVD has sharp, not very scratchy picture. There are only four chapter links.

Dick Tracy's Dilemma, 1947 film

The film begins with a man standing in the dark; he walks with a limp and has an artificial right hand. The watchman is hit in the head. Thieves steal boxes from a fur vault. "The Blinking Skull" is a bar, Dick Tracy checks the back room. Fuses were removed to turn off the lights. The insurance adjusters arrive to check the vault. The watchman was found dead, blocks away. They find his scribbled not with a clue. "Sightless" overhears a conversation but makes some noise and drops pencils. Can he escape? Dick and Pat get the message about Hemp Street. Lily shows up alone. She is brought in for questioning and tells all she knows; she is held as a material witness. "Sightless" won't talk now. Dick Tracy deduces the first four digits of the telephone number. Pat dials all the combinations until he gets a response.

Pat figures out the number and the caller. "Vitamin" watches the people who go into that bar. Will there be a disagreement over splitting the loot? Will "The Claw" find out they are being watched? A buzzer warns when the police arrive, "The Claw" escapes. [No junk yard dogs?] Dick climbs over the wall. "The Claw" runs away and hides by the electrical transformers. "DANGER High Voltage." There is poetic justice to end this drama. But a call draws Dick Tracy away on a new job: "Hatchet Harry" was seen in a railroad yard.

Note the cast of villains in this film. The criminals in the cartoon all had some distinctive feature, a fantasy from some criminologist that is long out of date. [This was copied in some of the "James Bond" stories.] This cartoon strip appealed to adults like some cartoon ons TV today. Some claimed the character and face of "Dick Tracy" was based on Eliot Ness. The background of these stories show life in the 1940s.

Dick Tracy's Dilemma is one hour and was released in theaters on May 20, 1947. Ralph Byrd returns as Dick Tracy in this third installment of the Dick Tracy's movies. Ralph Byrd played Dick Tracy in the four original Republic Pictures serials. Junior does not make an appearance in the last two films and this would be Vitamin Flintheart last appearance. Tony Barrett who plays Sam, a henchman, also plays Melody Fiske in Dick Tracy Meets Gruesome. The villain this time is The Claw who right hand is missing and has a hook there instead. Him and two other thieves rob a fur store and kill the night watchman. It is up to Dick Tracy to recover the furs and bring the men into justice. The story has a minor subplot. Mr. Humphries, the owner of the furs, hired The Claw and the gang to rob the furs so he could collect the insurance money on them. The Claw meet his death when he raised his hook to kill Tracy; the hook get caught in some live wires and The Claw is electrocuted. This is by some critics the grittiest of all four Dick Tracy movies. Dick Tracy's Dilemma gets an AA++.

Ralph Byrd returns as Dick Tracy in RKO Radio's DICK TRACY'S DILEMNA. Tracy is helped by Vitamin Flintheart (Ian Keith) as they match wits with a gang of fur thieves and a criminal named "The Claw" who uses his articial hand as a weapon. Jack Lambert has the role of "The Claw" and Kay Christopher plays Tess Truehart.The cast also includes Bernadene Hayes as Longshot Lillie and Jimmy Conlin as Sightless. The movie sometimes goes by the title of the MARK OF THE CLAW.