Best movie ever!

As Good As It Gets

Simple and well acted, it has tension enough to knot the stomach.

An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

A wealthy philanthropist is found dead. The man pushed or fallen from the roof of an apartment building.Two reporters compete for the story. One detective works the case. Is it suicide or murder?More at being a murder mystery suspense thriller; than at being an actual horror.There is a good gathering of talent. Ginger Rogers, carries the story. The cast working well with her acting style.The story, is a good tale; and it could be used as a possible model for modern detective stories with titles that are of a similar nature.A Shriek in the Night, is not what I see as being a classic horror; but it is a good classic film; and will be enjoyed by fans of classic detective movies.

When millionaire philanthropist falls from the top of a luxury apartment it is a mystery; did he fall, did he jump or was the pushed? The first person questioned is the dead man's secretary she claims to have no idea what happened and suggests the police talk to the maid; however she does warn them that the is a little dumb. The maid claims she may have heard a hissing noise but isn't certain. As the police discuss matters a reporter, Ted Rand, bluffs his way into the apartment… he isn't the first reporter there though; the secretary. Pat Morgan, is actually a reporter too. She had been investigating her employer and knew a lot more than she told the police. Unfortunately for her as the calls in the story she doesn't realise she is telling the story to her rival on the other phone rather than her paper. She gets the sack and is determined to get her revenge on Rand, who she was once involved with.As the story progresses more people die and motives start to emerge. It seems the dead man was involved with the woman in the apartment below and when she is found dead suspicion falls on the husband… although there are other dodgy characters about; including the mob. As Morgan digs deeper into the story she puts herself in real danger.At just over an hour in length this film doesn't outstay its welcome. There is a nice mystery with a reasonable number of suspects. While it is listed as a comedy it is better to think of it as a drama with a few comical moments as there are few real laughs to be had…if you don't include some of the overacting by secondary characters! Leads Ginger Rogers and Lyle Talbot are likable as Morgan and Rand. Given the fairly light tone to much of the film its ending gets quite dark; it looked as though Morgan was going to be incinerated by the villain… even though it was unlikely to actually happen this proved quite tense. Overall a pretty good film; it may be a bit crackly but the story is quite fresh.

"Rival reporters Pat Morgan (Ginger Rogers) and Ted Rand (Lyle Talbot) are always trying to out-scoop each other on stories. The latest involves the mysterious death of a philanthropist who fell to his death after a shriek was heard from his penthouse apartment. The two reporters start out as rivals but combine efforts to solve the crime and write the story when more residents of the apartment building turn up dead," according to the DVD sleeve's synopsis.This said-to-be follow-up to "The Thirteenth Guest" has little to do with the earlier movie; it is not a sequel, as has been inferred. Ms. Rogers continues to develop her skills. Mr. Talbot adds a little humor to his characterization. They are a pleasant team, the plot is interesting and mysterious; but, the resulting film is very dull. The opening and closing are startling. A long-winded wrap-up of plot development points follows the climax.*** A Shriek in the Night (1933) Albert Ray ~ Ginger Rogers, Lyle Talbot, Harvey Clark

With someone like Ginger Rogers involved, you'd be expecting a pretty good show, right? Well, I guess this one wasn't horrible, but I was certainly expecting more. It has your basic mystery plot: A man falls to his death under mysterious circumstances. Was it murder? Rogers plays the typical female reporter that is mandatory for this kind of show, and she's no better than anyone else who has played the same role. The detectives were a bit disappointing, usually detectives in this kind of film are pretty interesting characters, but here they mostly fall flat. One of them has a couple good lines near the first, but thats about it. Lyle Talbot's character makes up for it a bit though, I thought he was pretty cool and provided a few good chuckles. Overall, you can find a lot better films in this vein.5/10