Blondes at Work (1938)

Waste of time

i must have seen a different film!!

It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

It’s sentimental, ridiculously long and only occasionally funny

Fourth in the WB series of B movies about a fast-talking lady reporter named Torchy Blane and her cop boyfriend Steve McBride. In this one, as usual, the couple are separately investigating the same case, each trying to solve it before the other. Lightweight, enjoyable entry with the stars at their best. The scene stealer in this one is Tom Kennedy. He's a treat as the dimwitted cop Gahagan, who inadvertently helps Torchy stay one step ahead of the police. Carole Landis has a bit part. The rest of the cast includes John Ridgley, Rosella Towne, and Donald Briggs. One of my favorites in the series.

SPOILERS --This is one of the "middle" Torchy Blane, reporter at large, stories. When a department store owner disappears, its up to "Torchy" (Glenda Farrell) to figure out what happened. With the usual cast of characters, Barton MacLane and Tom Kennedy, she runs circles around the police. The story is OK... but not much new here. It's the usual conniving and trickery to get the scoop when no-one else can. One interesting note -- Carol Landis is in here, with a speaking part... she was married five times, then committed suicide, and was only 29 years old ! About half of her roles were un-credited. Directed by Frank McDonald, who had directed a bunch of the Torchy Blane films. It's the usual fare, shown on Turner Classics now and then.

Reporter Torchy Blane is getting all the scoops, and Captain McTavish is mad. He thinks Torchy's fiancé, Lieutenant McBride, is giving her inside police information. The rival newspaper's editor "wants to know if we're running the police department for the taxpayers or for Torchy Blane." McBride ought to keep her in line!Glenda Farrell as Torchy is funnier than ever in this fast-moving farce with a bit of mystery tossed in. Torchy plays innocent when asked where she's getting her leads ("Oh, I don't know, those things just seem to come to me. I told you I was psychic") but has soon tracked a missing businessman to a hotel room where someone has been stabbed. Inside info or no, Torchy is consistently a step quicker than the cops. Barton McLane is a good sport as the generally bewildered Lieutenant McBride; the character is solid enough but essentially a straight man for Torchy and for police chauffeur Gahagan. Tom Kennedy is back as poetry-loving cop Gahagan and this time around he's keeping a diary—for "postererity," he says. He lets Torchy in on the secret diary; she asks if he has a good hiding place for it and encourages him to keep track of every little thing his boss McBride does….The plot has a few thin spots. Could you really trace a person that easily from a single smudge of lipstick on a handkerchief? The ending is rather abrupt as well, wrapping things up in an awful hurry. However, such issues hardly matter since plot here is always secondary to the goofy character interplay. The mystery, such as it is, involves a disappearance and murder but is little more than a backdrop for the comic story of Torchy and her sources.Not much suspense but lots of fun…. Farrell especially—hilarious and cute—appears to be having a ball.

After increased pressure from Steve's superior, he and Torchy decide to part ways for a while, professionally speaking: each one will go on doing his job without the other one's help. When a department store owner is found stabbed to death, Steve is doubly puzzled: who killed him, and how does Torchy still manage to get all those inside scoops about the case? Not as fresh as the first two entries, but better than "The Adventurous Blonde", "Blondes At Work" is exceptionally slow-moving (it certainly feels longer than an hour), and not much of a mystery either, but it does have some standout moments of Torchy outwitting her opposition, and an ending that's both unexpected and sweet. ** out of 4.