Murder in the Blue Room (1944)

The mystery is as obvious as the comedy, 18 May 2020

A party is held in a house that has been closed since a mysterious death occurred in one of the bedrooms known as “the Blue Room”.  Believing he might be able to solve the mystery, one of the guests asks to spend the night in the very same fateful room.  The next morning, it’s discovered he’s disappeared.  Has the Blue Room claimed its next victim?

To say I’m disappointed in Murder in the Blue Room would be an understatement.  Going in, the film had so much going for it.  The old, dark house setting, mysterious deaths, secret passages, and maybe even a ghost.  All the trappings are there for a good movie.  And don’t misunderstand my rating, there are bits here and there that I really enjoyed.  Unfortunately, what Murder in the Blue Room doesn’t have is a good script.  To begin with, the mystery parts of the film are way too easy to solve.  The movie all but announces the murderer’s identity from the very beginning.  Second, the only thing more obvious than the mystery is the comedy.  I don’t mind comedy mixed with my old, dark house movie, but only if it’s good comedy.  Most of what is meant to be funny here comes from a trio of wannabe Andrews Sisters.  The jokes are so hamfisted in their delivery that you can spot them from a mile away.  This kind of comedy just doesn’t work for me. 

Finaly, there’s one other thing that really got under my skin while watching Murder in the Blue Room that I want to mention - that ghost.  What was the point?  It wasn’t frightening, it wasn’t funny, and it had no bearing on the mystery.  Why add it to the movie at all?  Despite all of the other issues I had with the film, I might have seen fit to rate Murder in the Blue Room higher had that ridiculous ghost not been included. 

4/10