I’m just going to change these and find a good corner to sulk in. Would you like to sulk with me?
Hello to all of the classic people that are returning. I am glad you are back. I want to welcome any new visitors. As a technical note, references and citations are listed for each show on the site at classicmovierev.com. Today on Classic Movie Rev, we are taking on Film Noir Mystery in Mexico (1948).
Before we get going, I want to remind you to follow the link in the show notes or from the site to visit our store – https://classicmovierev.com/go/tee/.
Today’s movie is not only special because it is a good Film Noir, but because the amazing Robert Wise directed it. This movie was announced as being bi-lingual, so it was assumed that there would be both an English version and a Spanish version. What they did was very creative, and it played into the mystery very well. You can find a lot more out about Robert Wise by listening to the interview with Joe Jordan and/or reading his book.
This movie has a pitiful 5.8 rating[1] on iMDB.com. I had to pause to go register this movie as eight stars on the site. The film fares worse at rottentomatoes.com with no Tomatometer score and no audience score[2].
There is a dearth of reviews on this film. I couldn’t locate anything in the New York Times or on Roger Ebert. So, I went with the top web reviews and found a couple of reviews that thought the film was just okay.
The first reviewer, Dennis Schwartz, said:
“A brisk programmer directed by Robert Wise Born to Kill (1947) from a story by Muriel Roy Bolton and a screenplay by Lawrence Kimble. There’s not much of a mystery to this case of a diamond theft, but plenty of breezy dialogue and some passable black-and-white photographed location shots of Mexico City (the film was shot mostly in the studio). It’s routine, but is one of those mystery films you never mind seeing if you want to pleasantly kill some time with something that’s not that taxing on the ‘old noggin.”[3]
The Time Out website said:
“You’ve seen every twist in this routine caper a thousand times before. Lundigan is the insurance agency detective sent to Mexico on the trail of a fellow-employee (Reed) who has disappeared along with a valuable necklace. White is the pretty blonde singer who may be an accomplice, but obviously isn’t since Lundigan falls for her. She is actually Reed’s sister, so he’s obviously innocent too; and it only remains for Cortez’ villain (who owns a nightclub, naturally) to get his comeuppance after demonstrating his nastiness. Wise directs neatly enough, but the half-hearted romantic byplay and wisecracking dialogue cry out for Mitchum and Russell. Only Dalya, as Cortez’ disillusioned, man-hungry mistress, manages to give her lines any bite.”[4]
Actors – Mystery in Mexico (1948)
Returning
Jacqueline White played the role of Victoria Ames, sister to a missing private investigator. White was first covered in the Film Noir The Narrow Margin (1952).
Ricardo Cortez played villain John Norcross. Cortez was first covered in the not too bad The Maltese Falcon (1931).
New
William Lundigan played insurance investigator Steve Hastings. Lundigan was born in 1914 in upstate New York. Tall and slim, Lundigan was a student-athlete at Syracuse University. Lundigan got an announcer job on a local radio station because his father owned the building.
Universal Studio’s head of production, Charles R. Rogers, heard the voice and had Lundigan tracked down. Lundigan began taking small roles in films such as Armored Car (1937), Danger on the Air (1938), The Black Doll (1938), Dodge City (1939), Legion of Lost Flyers (1939), Santa Fe Trail (1940) with Errol Flynn, The Fighting 69th (1940), an enjoyable World War I movie with James Cagney, The Sea Hawk (1940) also with Errol Flynn, and The Case of the Black Parrot (1941). During the 1940s, Lundigan did voice work for Looney Tunes cartoons.
Lundigan was medically exempt from the draft but volunteered to join the Marines. The enlistment enraged Louis B. Mayer, and they dropped Lundigan from his MGM contract. Lundigan served as a combat cameraman and was in the battles of Peleliu and Okinawa. He was wounded during the Battle of Okinawa[5].
Following the war, Lundigan continued with movies like Dishonored Lady (1947), Mystery in Mexico (1948), State Department: File 649 (1949), The House on Telegraph Hill (1951), Serpent of the Nile (1953), Riders to the Stars (1954), The White Orchid (1954), and Where Angels Go Trouble Follows! (1968).
He worked on stage and hosted “Climax!” 1954 and “Shower of Stars” 1954. He was also in “Men into Space” 1959-1960. Lundigan died in 1975.
Tony Barrett played Carlos the Taxi Driver. Barrett was born in 1916 in New York City. Barrett started in films in 1946. He was heavily into the Film Noir, crime, and oater genres with films like Fear (1946), Criminal Court (1946), San Quentin (1946), The Falcon’s Adventure (1946), Born to Kill (1947), Dick Tracy’s Dilemma (1947), Wild Horse Mesa (1947), Mystery in Mexico (1948), Western Heritage (1948), Impact (1949), Black Hand (1950), Prisoners in Petticoats (1950), and Pushover (1954).
Barrett’s significant impact was writing for television crime shows like “Peter Gunn” 1958 — 1961, “77 Sunset Strip” 1963 — 1964, “Honey West” 1965 —1966, and “Mod Squad” 1968 — 1973, which are some pretty darn good shows. Barrett passed in 1974 at the age of 58.
Story – Mystery in Mexico (1948)
As the credits roll, exteriors of Mexico City are shown. Inside the Versailles Club in Mexico City, a hand is opening a wall safe. The man removes a jeweled necklace before the lights come on, and the man flees in fear. The man is wearing a wait staff uniform with the name Glenn. As Glenn (Walter Reed) flees, the person who turned on the light shots hits him. Glenn gets away on the dark streets. The gun is fired a few more times directly towards the screen. This firing towards the screen is no doubt a tribute to The Great Train Robbery (1903), where this act was first performed. It is alleged that people ran from the theaters when this scene was shown in 1903.
In Los Angles at the Central Trust Insurance Company’s office, insurance investigator Steve Hastings (William Lundigan) is being briefed about the necklace. Glenn is or was an agent for the insurance company sent to investigate the original theft.
Hastings is sent to investigate a woman that suddenly decided to travel to Mexico and is somehow involved with the case.
Victoria Ames (Jacqueline White) checks in at the airport. Hastings is there waiting. He talks to Victoria and pretends he knows her. She does not fall for his come on. After being rebuffed, he forces her to let him carry her portfolio. He loses all of her music on the flight line. He sits next to her on the flight, and she does everything she can do to put this masher off.
While Victoria sleeps on the plane, Hastings pulls a telegram out of her purse from Glenn, directing her where to go in Mexico City. When she wakes, Hastings continues to push, saying he will show her all of the sights. Victoria is pretty firm on her no. In conversation, Victoria says she is flying down to meet her brother, who she says is a tough truck driver.
On the ground in Mexico, Hastings continues to push. She kisses him and says he can claim success. Swigart (José Torvay) is watching them arrive. Since her brother is not there and trying to get away from Hastings, she takes a taxi offered by a man who says he doesn’t speak English.
Swigart arrives and helps Victoria by telling the taxi driver to take her where she wants to go, keep pretending not to speak English, and leave her at the destination even if she asks him to wait. The interspersing of English and Spanish is the beauty of this bi-lingual film. I would say that most Americans in 1948 could not follow the Spanish, which is used to withhold information from Victoria and later Hastings.
Swigart tells Hastings that Victoria was going to her hotel. Hastings is swooped up by a taxi driver named Carlos (Tony Barrett). Carlos speaks perfect English and says he is from Texas. Hastings hires him for a week or so.
Victoria is left at #5 Del Carmen. She asks the driver to wait, but he leaves her there alone. The patio door is open, and Victoria goes inside. She enters the very dark casa asking for Glenn. Victoria hears footsteps, and she picks up a fireplace iron. The man making the noise is Hastings. He tells her that the man from the airport gave him the address.
Victoria and Hastings decide to split up and search different rooms. Two men jump on Hastings and start beating him down. When Victoria screams, the men run out. Carlos charges out of his taxi, holding a gun. He says something in Spanish I can’t get and fires at the fleeing men.
Hastings is okay, and before long, a cop comes. The cop finds Carlos’s gun and says that there have been many burglaries in the area. Hastings translates this, saying the cop said Victoria looks like a burglar. The police chief agrees to help Hastings because he is a private detective. In the conversation, it is revealed that Victoria is Glenn’s sister. Carlos hears all of the details.
Hastings says he told the police, the fight was a lover’s spat between Victoria and him. Hastings said he made up the story to protect her brother. She warms up to him a bit. They go back to the hotel and get Victoria a room. They make plans for dinner in an hour. Victoria finds out that Hastings has gotten them adjoining rooms.
Hastings leaves the hotel and goes to the telegraph office. He finds out that the message Victoria received from her brother came from the Versailles Club by messenger. Hastings calls Victoria to let her know he will be late, but there is no answer from her room.
Hastings rushes back to the hotel and confirms Victoria is not there. Carlos drives Hastings to the Versailles Club. In the club, Hastings is shocked to see that Victoria is working as the nightclub singer. Hastings asks one of the bartenders, Benny, about Glenn Ames, and Benny becomes very cagey. When the maître d’ arrives, Benny is so scared he drops a glass. Hastings is asked to join the club owner John Norcross (Ricardo Cortez), his friend Dolores Fernandez (Jacqueline Dalya), and Victoria at Norcross’ table. The maître d’ has a striking resemblance to Andy Garcia.
Dolores was the singer before Victoria, and Dolores is not too happy. Hastings is curious how Norcross found out so quickly that Victoria was in town. Dolores and Hastings go dancing. Victoria tells Norcross that she doesn’t know Hastings very well. Dolores invites Hastings to a party, and Norcross has also invited Victoria.
Hastings goes back to the club and takes Carlos inside with him. Hastings asks about Benny and is told that he is off and will be off the next day as well.
The next day Hastings and Carlos go to Benny’s house. Carlos doesn’t translate correctly. After some roundabout, a young girl translates. She says Benny has gone to his boss’ place to work at a party. Hastings rents a car for him and Victoria to go to the party. On the drive, Victoria tells that her brother is an insurance investigator. Victoria and Hastings start cozying up to each other.
They arrive at the site of a car crash. They pass with little thought. When they get to the party, most people are watching a Fronton match, which is a popular version of Jai Alai. Dolores is happy to see Hastings. Dolores says she is bartending today because Benny was killed in the car they drove by. Norcross takes Victoria away. Dolores is jealous of the attention Victoria is getting from Norcross, although she says they are not in a relationship.
The police are talking to the chauffeur about the accident, and it is Swigart. Swigart said he saw the accident, but Hastings can get any real information out of him.
Hastings joins Dolores for drinks. They kiss and are busted by Victoria. She leaves mad. Dolores says Norcross is dangerous, and people keep dying around him.
Victoria jumps in the car, and Hastings runs to get in with her. It’s a rough drive back to Mexico City. Hastings shows his badge to Victoria back at the hotel and says he works for the same company as her brother and is trying to find him. Hastings gets a slap.
Carlos shows up, and Hastings says he is going to see the police commandant. Carlos calls Norcross and tells what is going on. So, Carlos is a bad guy, and all this time, I thought he was a cop.
A small Mexican boy shows up at the hotel and says that he needs to see Victoria. Carlos overhears the conversation. The hotel doorman sends the kid away. Carlos tries to get the message from the boy. The boy holds firm that he must talk to Victoria.
Carlos takes the boy to Victoria. He says he saw a picture of Victoria in someone’s purse. The boy has Glenn’s jacket and says a fair bit in Spanish, which Carlos translates as they found your wounded brother in a field.
The boy says Victoria should go with him to the police. Carlos says the boy’s family does not want to become involved with the police. Carlos tricks Victoria into not leaving a message for Hastings.
Hastings briefs the police commandant on everything he knows. The police put a man at the hotel to watch for Victoria, who Hastings now believes is innocent.
Victoria, Carlos and the boy go to a farm where Glenn is staying with the family. Before they arrive, Glenn does something to a woven doll. Victoria asks about a doctor. The farmer says that a doctor is very far away down the road. Carlos translates this as the doctor is nearby, and he volunteers to go and get him.
Carlos goes to a telephone and calls Norcross. Norcross is meeting with Hastings at the time Norcross gets the call. Hastings ducks into another office where he can listen in on the call. A man comes in behind him and knocks him out.
When Hastings awakes, he is at the farm. Swigart is beating Glenn, and Carlos is holding Victoria. The Mexican family is standing against the wall in terror. Hastings jumps to help Victoria but is knocked down again, but this time it is by Norcross.
Hastings has figured out that Norcross is behind all of the crime. Glenn shows where the jewels are hidden using his eyes. Norcross kicks the doll to the little girl, and she chews him out.
Hastings starts spinning a yarn to stop the beating of Glenn. Hastings tells them that the jewels are in Glenn’s jacket in the hotel. Carlos leaves to get the jacket.
After some time, the little girl tells her mother she wants water. She drops her doll, and Swigart picks it up. She bravely takes the doll from the criminal and has her mother give the doll a drink. Carlos arrives with the jacket, and there is nothing in it. The little girl pulls the head off the doll, future serial killer, and finds the necklace.
Norcross takes the necklace from the girl. He waves for his henchmen to murder all of the witnesses. The Mexican policeman that was watching the hotel opens the door. Norcross fires at him, and the cop guns him down. The Mexican father jumps on Swigart while Hastings knocks Carlos down. Victoria faints.
Later Victoria and Hastings are discussing marriage while sitting in a terraced restaurant. Glenn comes in and says he has an assignment from the agency for either him or Hastings. When Victoria finds that the case involves Dolores, she makes Glenn take it. Victoria decides to marry Hastings. The two men talk, and it was a stunt created to make Victoria jealous so she would marry Hastings.
I’ll be back with conclusions and the World-Famous Short Summary following a word from our sponsors.
Summary – Mystery in Mexico (1948)
This movie could have been a decent Film Noir with an English and a Spanish version. But, what was done, made this a far superior film. When watching a who-done-it, part of the joy is seeing if you can pick up the clue that leads to the killer. By adding Spanish and intentional misinterpretations of the same, a new layer of mystery is added. Huh – Mystery in Mexico.
Below is an example that was taken from Joe Jordan’s book Robert Wise: The Motion Pictures:
“In Victoria’s hotel room, the boy conveys Ames’s [Glenn] wishes to Carlos as he says, “El señor dijo que su hermana tiene que ir conmigo a la Policia.” An English translation of the boy’s words states, “The gentleman told me that his sister needed to go with me to the police,” but Carlos instead informs Victoria that the child and his family are afraid of being involved with the authorities.”[6]
World-Famous Short Summary – Get busy with the Duolingo app.
I hope you enjoyed today’s show. You can find connections to social media and email on the site at classicmovierev.com or in the podcast show notes.
If you enjoyed this show, go ahead and hit the subscribe button. If you have already subscribed, you can tell a friend, colleague, or family member about the show or leave a review wherever you listen to Podcasts. It really helps the show get found.
If you want to comment, suggest a movie, or help out, contact me by email at jec at classicmovierev dot com.
Beware the moors.
[1] https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0040631/
[2] https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/mystery_in_mexico
[3] https://dennisschwartzreviews.com/mysteryinmexico/
[4] https://www.timeout.com/movies/mystery-in-mexico
[5] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Lundigan
[6] https://classicmovierev.com/author-joe-jordan/
Leave a Reply
Your email is safe with us.