StunnaKrypto Self-important, over-dramatic, uninspired.

TeenzTen An action-packed slog

Beystiman It's fun, it's light, [but] it has a hard time when its tries to get heavy.

Breakinger A Brilliant Conflict

utgard14 The first Perry Mason film starring Warren William has the famed attorney taking on a client who claims a neighbor is trying to drive him insane with a howling dog. It gets weirder from there as we get into a will and the neighbor having two wives, one of which supposedly runs off with Perry's client. Soon someone winds up murdered and it's up to Perry to get to the bottom of it all.The Perry Mason series is not among my favorites of the many B detective film series of the 1930s and 1940s, but it's enjoyable enough. Warren William plays Perry as a standard tough private dick character rather than the Perry many of us know from watching the Raymond Burr TV show. He does fine but, in my opinion, William's better suited for parts where he can be playful and charming. Helen Trenholme makes for a lovely Della Street. The rest of the cast includes Mary Astor, Grant Mitchell, Gordon Westcott, Russell Hicks, Addison Richards, and Allen Jenkins playing it straight (and sporting a mustache!). Like I said, this series isn't one of my favorites but none of the movies I've seen were terrible. This first one is pretty good and definitely worth a look if you're curious about seeing a different kind of Perry Mason than you might be used to.

Neil Doyle Warren William's version of Perry Mason is a far cry from that of Raymond Burr in the popular TV series of the '60s, but he gives it his own brand of humor and charm.THE CASE OF THE HOWLING DOG is more complex than it would seem from an outline of the story. It begins when a man complains to Perry Mason that a howling dog is driving him insane. He's also about to settle his will, leaving his entire state to Mrs. Foley (MARY ASTOR), a next-door neighbor. These two strands of plot keep building toward a very baffling story which only begins to make sense toward the last ten minutes, when Mason starts to unravel the truth.Intereresting tale gets good treatment. It was the first of the Perry Mason movies from Warner Bros. WARREN WILLIAM and MARY ASTOR do nicely in the leads and ALLEN JENKINS plays it straight for a change, as a detective. GRANT MITCHELL as an opposing District Attorney and RUSSELL HICKS as Clinton Foley lend strong support.

robert-temple-1 This was the first Perry Mason film ever made, with Warren William as Mason, who is superb in the part, much better than Raymond Burr, who always annoyed me so much I could not watch the later Perry Mason films. Mason's assistant Della Street is here played by Helen Trenholme, a beautiful and talented choice, but she inexplicably left the film business after making this and one other film in 1934, and that was it. The best performance in the film is by Gordon Westcott, as a distraught client in a state of high anxiety and 'aggravated melancholia'. Unfortunately, he died not long after in a polo accident, which deprived the screen of a real talent. The direction is excellent, with lots of retreating dolly shot 'pullbacks' to add dynamism to the action. Mary Astor does well, but then when did she not? Hats off to Lightning the Dog, who is seen howling splendidly like a wolf in the initial shots of the film. I'd like to have one like that around the house, wouldn't you? Lots of character, not anybody's poodle, not a wimp. The plot of this film is wonderfully complex, a true brain-teaser. This is a Perry Mason film with serious intent, and not a pastiche. It is well worth watching.

chall-5 Wow, can't top the "Lightning" review, but here's more about the movie itself. I believe this was the first in a series of Perry Mason films starring Warren William.What's odd is that this film has no other cast members in common with the subsequent films and in fact the whole tenor of the movie is quite different. In this film Perry has a huge office and staff of detectives. He makes no quips. Has no comic-relief sidekick. And the mystery itself is actually quite good.Later films gave him a goofy detective sidekick ("Spudsey"), made more of the romance between Della Street and Perry, and had much less mystery in the plots. The appeal of these movies is Perry's string of one-liners he gives to the police, witnesses, etc.But give this first film a look. There's no comic relief, but the plot is very involved and interesting.