“I made a very pretty corpse, but you could be a star.“, 13 April 2020
Female PI B.T. Brady (Bess Armstrong) is hired by a mystery writer to deliver his latest script to his publisher. But after the writer is murdered, Brady feels she owes it to her client to uncover his killer. There are no lack of suspects with a slew of other jealous writers and a jilted agent, Brady’s got her hands full. There’s also a police lieutenant dogging her every footstep. He knows Brady has more information than she’s giving up. After a death threat, Brady realizes she’s on the right track, but may have bitten off more than she can chew.
It’s pretty easy to see This Girl for Hire’s TV roots. The sound recording, cinematography, and acting all scream TV film pilot. And while I see why it was never picked up, This Girl for Hire isn’t a complete waste. Armstrong makes a harmless, if not charming, lead. While I never bought her “tough guy” routine (and that trench coat and fedora were way too much), she’s more than capable of pulling off the comedic aspects of the role. She stumbles and bumbles her way to the solution. The film’s finale is really nice with some moderately suspenseful moments. I can’t believe I didn’t guess the identity of the killer. Looking back, it was so obvious. Finally, I would have liked to see Brady bring the case to a conclusion without the help of the male police officer. He didn’t do much, but she should have wrapped things up on her own.
The old-school Hollywood trappings were also a bit much. Screening The Big Sleep in the den, the wood paneled boat of a car, and the voice over a la Bogart were more pandering than humorous. However, a supporting performance from Hollywood legend Celeste Holm was a real highlight.
So, overall, This Girl for Hire is a decent little time-waster if you go into it with lowered expectations.
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