Hollywood publicity agent comes up with the idea to cast a real gangster in the lead of the studio's new gangster movie. The agent, his girl and the director go to a restaurant to find a real gangster and spot the perfect one when he slugs another mobster and then runs into the night. They follow him and convince him to take the role. He's not a gangster in real life, but everyone thinks he is, especially the real gang lord he punched in the face in the restaurant.
This is an amusing but unremarkable little film. Showing signs of the meager budget it still gives a nice sense of being more than just a sound stage bound tale with some nice exteriors, a chase through the streets of Hollywood and enough variation in the sets that you don't feel its just the same place redressed.
The cast is game with Frank Albertson being very amusing as the fast talking PR man who seems really to be running everything going on around him. Also a joy is John Davidson as the director. I'm a big fan of Davidson from his numerous movie serial appearances so it was nice to see him take a role where he was really vital to the plot and where he could do more than just be a sinister henchman.
The print I saw was one of the retitled Hollywood Mystery, which is more than a misnomer since there really is no mystery to speak of, the film being more a comedy about Hollywood.
Worth a bag of popcorn and a soda, especially if you can watch it as part of a double feature.
This is an amusing but unremarkable little film. Showing signs of the meager budget it still gives a nice sense of being more than just a sound stage bound tale with some nice exteriors, a chase through the streets of Hollywood and enough variation in the sets that you don't feel its just the same place redressed.
The cast is game with Frank Albertson being very amusing as the fast talking PR man who seems really to be running everything going on around him. Also a joy is John Davidson as the director. I'm a big fan of Davidson from his numerous movie serial appearances so it was nice to see him take a role where he was really vital to the plot and where he could do more than just be a sinister henchman.
The print I saw was one of the retitled Hollywood Mystery, which is more than a misnomer since there really is no mystery to speak of, the film being more a comedy about Hollywood.
Worth a bag of popcorn and a soda, especially if you can watch it as part of a double feature.