MISS PINKERTON is a 1932 mystery film, produced by Warners-First National, and based on a novel by Mary Roberts Rinehart.
The title is a nickname given to the main character, a Nurse Adams (Joan Blondell) who gets involved in a murder case. ("Pinkerton" refers to the legendary detective agency). A young man named Herbert Wynn is found dead of a gunshot wound. The shock of the event causes Wynn's elderly aunt Juliet Mitchell to become bedridden, and Nurse Adams, who works at the city hospital, is assigned to look after the old woman. Upon her arrival at the Mitchell house, the police inspector working the case (George Brent) asks her to keep a watchful eye on things, and the spunky young woman readily agrees. Nurse Adams is glad to get a change from her routine, but she gets more than she bargained for.
Mary Roberts Rinehart co-wrote the famous play THE BAT, a story that set the pattern for the "Old Dark House" mystery thriller, and MISS PINKERTON follows that template. The Mitchell house is a rambling old estate, and it is a place where shadowy characters skulk about in the dark, suspicious servants are constantly sneaking about, and everyone who shows up casts withering glances at each other. Director Lloyd Bacon and cinematographer Barney McGill use plenty of atmospheric nighttime shots, and the movie--which is only a little over an hour long--has a nice steady pace to it.
The best aspect of MISS PINKERTON is Joan Blondell. She had already donned the white uniform in NIGHT NURSE, but in that film Barbara Stanwyck was the one that had to deal with a dangerous situation. Blondell's Pre-Code sass is toned down a bit this time (she is, after all, playing a professional nurse), but she still shows plenty of charisma, and her expressive eyes get a workout. (She also lets off a series of screams that would make Fay Wray proud.) As one would expect, George Brent's inspector starts to fall for Nurse Adams, and while I've always found Brent rather dull, he and Blondell make a nice team.
There's plenty of worthy suspects in MISS PINKERTON, with C. Henry Gordon as the family doctor, Holmes Herbert as the family lawyer, and John Wray and Blanche Friderici as the creepy servants. Film buffs might be able to catch Walter Brennan and Lyle Talbot in bit roles.
It's surprising that Warners didn't do a series of films on the Miss Pinkerton character (Mary Roberts Rinehart wrote multiple novels featuring the nurse, which I have not read). It would have been great to have seen Joan Blondell play Nurse Adams again. (Warners did a remake of this film a few years later called THE NURSE'S SECRET, which I also haven't seen.) It's also surprising that Miss Pinkerton hasn't been the subject of a TV series--of course now the character's nickname would go over the heads of a contemporary audience. MISS PINKERTON is a fun little film that gives Joan Blondell an appealing leading role.
This is a fun little movie, and Joan Blondell is always a treat. I have a copy of The Nurse's Secret, which stars Lee Patrick. She's also a treat to watch, but not as attractive as Blondell and doesn't have the same style.
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