Seven Doors to Death (1944)

One of my all time favorites.

Don't listen to the negative reviews

The acting in this movie is really good.

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

The seven deadly doors open off a very pretty open courtyard. Right away I was scared— probably because I could have actually paid money to see this mess. If you can figure out the plot, the physics department may have a place for you. Poverty row PRC really cut more than corners with this one. The sets are few, and dark for more reason than atmosphere. For a supposed mystery, there's about as much suspense as watching a clock tick. But then it is 1944, and wartime audiences need any kind of escape. That's probably why usual sidekick Chick Chandler gets a shot at the lead and shows why he was better as a sidekick. He seems not to be taking anything too seriously. The highpoint may well be half-dressed Rebel Randall's shimmy and shake that unfortunately doesn't come til near the end. Otherwise, there's nothing to recommend in this woeful programmer.

"Seven Doors To Death" is a very murky film, in both senses of the word: visually and in content. Sometimes we are practically looking at a black screen, especially during in scenes set in cellars, basements, etc. But it's also very hard to know who is who, to keep the story straight, and what's even worse, to care. The writer-director of this movie has over 90 credits on IMDb, so it's hard to know how he could have gone so wrong in this case. Then again, the fact that he directed 9 (!!) films in 1944 alone probably means he didn't have enough time to afford the proper care to every one of them. I'd give this forgettable mystery * out of 4 - and that's only for Rebel Randall's leggy and scrappy femme fatale.

These old whodunit movies depend on good chemistry among the characters. The leads in this one seem a bit lacking. The plot is fun and keeps us guessing. There doesn't seem to be much threat overhanging the cast, so it doesn't exactly keep us on the edges of our seats. The movie begins nicely with a young woman using a flashlight (pretending it's a gun) to hijack a ride with a young man. He crashes the car and she disappears. After hunting her down, they become allied in a murder case. They are possible suspects much of the time, but it never seems to be serious. This makes what they do rather bland and uninteresting. The girl is a little too one dimensional and the male lead quite dull. There is a courtyard that looks a little like a contemporary shopping mall. There are seven shops and everyone is a suspect. The title makes me think of foreign intrigue. It's not that, though some of the peripheral characters are interesting. Unfortunately, it's relatively forgettable when all is said and done.

As the movie starts there's a scream, a gun shot and the sound of a body falling. The film shifts locations as a man in a car is hijacked by a woman on the run. In following her directions he ends up crashing his car and the woman runs away. He tries to follow the woman into an area with a small group of stores, only to end up discovering a dead body. The man notifies the police, who then find a body then the one he reported. From there its complication after complication, most of which are a bit clever but really have nothing to do with the plot and seem to be out of another movie. The conclusion when it comes seems to be tacked on and out of left field.This a PRC programmer that is a perfect example of what a by the numbers low low budget second feature is like. The plot is set up in such away to keep you interested no matter where the plot goes. Its structured to run no more than the alloted time. It has a minimum of sets and just enough people to keep to make it look as though this might, possibly, be a real place (if you've never lived in the real world). Its also completely forgettable.The plot has the group of stores being searched and researched again and again to find what ever the latest clue has revealed. Most of the time this is done in the dark so we really can't see where we are. Everyone is a suspect until the very end when the killer is revealed by broad leap of logic. If it wasn't for some rather weird asides, a dance number, a bit about making toast, and a few others, this movie could easily have run half its length. This isn't to say its a dull or bad movie, its not. Things are pleasantly confused for at least the first 15 minutes during which time you'll desperately be trying to figure out what you're watching. By then you'll be hooked since you'll want to know where this very messy movie is going.This is a good movie, especially when viewed at 3am while curled up in bed. Its not high art nor is it something that you'll find becoming your favorite film of all time. Its an okay time passer which is what it was designed to be. What you'll take away is the odd sense that know one knew what these people were up to since some of the characters are off the wall (a body snatching embalmer who's an okay guy, for example) and some exposition that is ripe with sexual tension and implied situations the Hays office would never approve of.On its own terms 7 out of 10.