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blumdeluxe "Bank Alarm" is an early crime movie, evolving around a series of robbed banks and the agent who is supposed to solve the case. While he gets closer and closer to the solution, events begin to become more personal, as his sister is kidnapped by the gang.What you see is what you get with this one, and that is a pretty basic and solid crime movie. There are no major surprising plot twists and most of the story is already predictable from the very beginning, but nonetheless the production is of some value and avoids bigger mistakes concerning images or plot. As in most of the films of the era, the audience of course has to bear a lot of pathos, including a lead character that is both without failure and bad boy enough to impress the ladies. This and the forced attempts to be funny by adding a character whose only purpose is to produce slapstick, are the only aspects that really drew the movie a bit down for me.All in all you shouldn't expect too much of this film but on the other hand it would be unfair to call it a bad movie. If you're looking for a bit of old school crime action, this could be maybe worth a try.

Leofwine_draca BANK ALARM is another low gauge thriller from the USA, made in 1937 and about a detective searching for the mastermind behind a string of successful bank robberies that have left the locality reeling. Little does he realise that he has a personal connection to the ringleader as it turns out his own sister is dating him.It's not really much of a hook on which to hang a movie but BANK ALARM tries very hard throughout. The problem is that the whole thing feels quite low brow with barely efficient plotting and a predominance of comic relief which feels very dated. In addition the pacing isn't quite right so this is a bit of a slog in places. The cast members do their best but the overall result is more than disappointing.

Robert J. Maxwell There's something always odd about these B features from the 30s. Even if the tales themselves are kind of entertaining, as this one is, nothing in it seems entirely real. Conrad Nagel here doesn't humiliate himself. He's handsome and expressive, but he's obviously acting, and so are the other cast members, except for the bit players who can't act at all. The direction, the performances, the art direction, the musical score -- they all suggest that the movie we're watching is a B feature made in America.This is passable in comedies, where naturalism isn't expected. The Marx Brothers were unimpeachable, though they had bigger budgets too. But in movies intended to be suspenseful or dramatic, the only successes seem to come when the elements of the film transcend realism and reach for the surreal. Is Humphrey Bogart convincing in "The Petrified Forest"? No, but he's magnetic and the story is taut. And no gangsters ever behaved or spoke as outrageously as Edward G. Robinson or Jimmy Cagney."Bank Alarm" is neither naturalistic nor surreal and so the scale is balanced at neutral and mundane. Aside from a few holes in the plot, it's all done with apparently effortless aplomb. They knew what they were doing. If someone walks towards a door, preparatory to leaving, the director and editor cut before he reaches the door. Why? Well, suppose the actor fumbled, or the door was stuck, or the wall wobbled like the cardboard it was made of. It would require a retake. So let's skip the actor reaching the door, opening it, walking through it, and closing it behind him. Too many danger points. No risks are taken with lighting a cigarette either. The dame might drop the match or something. So the scene begins with the cigarette already lighted.This doesn't interfere much with the story's flow, though. And, in fact, all that concision peps up the pace and moves the story a little faster. There is one element that's positively painful. A number of reviewers have noted that Chester Conklin's dim "Bulb" of a photographer isn't funny. They're right. It's more than that. Every time Conklin steps on a rake and the handle whips up and bounces off the back of his head, the viewer is likely to wince more markedly than Conklin himself.But the production IS after all professional, except for those bit parts. And if you're prepared to relax and shift your mind into neutral and let it idle, you might find this interesting enough to stick with to the predictable end.

mark.waltz The theft of bank funds seems perfect for thieves with airtight alibis seems tight to them: they were in jail overnight! But federal investigators and a female reporter are hot on the case that shows, even in a pre-digital age, clues are always left behind. An entertaining crime yarn filled with comedy thanks to a short, balding bumbling photographer (whom all the ladies think is "cute"), this also raises minor bit players to major character parts, and wraps up neatly in an hour. It is also well filmed so it doesn't look cheap, utilizing a dozen or so extras in a dance sequence (obviously crowded together to give the impression of a busy nightclub) and above average direction for a more "expensive" look.