Now it's Edmund Lowe as Philo Vance as he tackles "The Garden Murder Case." It's a neat story concerning murder by hypnosis - which, as other posters point out, is a fairly obvious one, although the murder is not. The denouement makes for an exciting last minutes of the movie. Virginia Bruce costars and serves as a love interest for Vance.
Lowe is certainly very attractive and extremely likable as Philo. It's a good fit, and to me, better than either Paul Lukas or Basil Rathbone. I haven't read the books, so I am just going by the films and the fact that the definitive Philo seems to have been William Powell. "The Bishop Murder Case" features a good performance by Rathbone, but it is an early talkie and the actors are still making the transition, so the film is rather awkward. Lukas was enjoyable and certainly embraced his character but his accent got in the way.
This is an enjoyable entry in the exploits of a character who certainly served Hollywood well.
Lowe is certainly very attractive and extremely likable as Philo. It's a good fit, and to me, better than either Paul Lukas or Basil Rathbone. I haven't read the books, so I am just going by the films and the fact that the definitive Philo seems to have been William Powell. "The Bishop Murder Case" features a good performance by Rathbone, but it is an early talkie and the actors are still making the transition, so the film is rather awkward. Lukas was enjoyable and certainly embraced his character but his accent got in the way.
This is an enjoyable entry in the exploits of a character who certainly served Hollywood well.