The Patient in Room 18

1938 "$100,000 worth of radium vanishes...three men are mysteriously killed...a corpse comes back from the dead...and it's only the beginning folks, only the beginning!"
5.9| 0h57m| NA| en| More Info
Released: 08 January 1938 Released
Producted By: Warner Bros. Pictures
Country:
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
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Choreographer Bob Connolly and prolific screenwriter Crane Wilbur teamed up on the direction of Warner Bros.' The Patient in Room 18. Patric Knowles delivers a delightfully comic performance as Lance, an outwardly normal young man obsessed with detective stories. When his obsession threatens to lapse over into lunacy, Lance is sent to the hospital for a nice long rest. It isn't long before he gets mixed up in a genuine murder mystery, using his second-hand knowhow to solve the case. Up-and-coming Ann Sheridan is quite amusing as Lance's nurse and confidante, while the murderer is played by a fellow who is usually cast as the murder victim.

Genre

Comedy, Crime, Mystery

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Director

Bobby Connolly, Crane Wilbur

Production Companies

Warner Bros. Pictures

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The Patient in Room 18 Audience Reviews

Dotsthavesp I wanted to but couldn't!
ThedevilChoose When a movie has you begging for it to end not even half way through it's pure crap. We've all seen this movie and this characters millions of times, nothing new in it. Don't waste your time.
StyleSk8r At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.
Logan By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.
JohnHowardReid This movie has two directors: Bobby Connolly started the film but when he was needed to go on location in Canada for the Technicolor short, "Romance Road", Crane Wilbur took his place. Fortunately, both directors had much the same style and both entrusted actually blocking their scenes, i.e. lining up the players in attractive compositions, to their cameraman – in this case, the very competent James Van Trees. So, it's utterly impossible to tell who directed what. Not that it matters in the slightest. The movie moves reasonably fast, the players are well-versed in their customary roles – nice to see Ann Sheridan, a little more animated than usual, walking down the hospital corridors, bright and breezy as the patient's nurse, plus Cliff Clark as the inspector, Charles Trowbridge as Doctor Bahman. In fact the whole cast is not only competent, but convincing. Even Patric Knowles, more animated than usual as our bed-bound patient, delivers a pleasing performance. True, the movie has a short running time (only 58 minutes), but there are just enough thrills and mystery to keep the viewer's sharp attention – even while Miss Sheridan is not on the screen. (Available on an excellent Warner Archive DVD).
gridoon2018 OK, after three movies with Sarah Keate / Sally Keating, I'm beginning to learn my lesson: once again, and despite sources indicating otherwise, the nurse does practically no mystery sleuthing herself; this time, she's the head nurse at a small private hospital, and the detective duties are handled (just like in the same year's "Mystery House") by her boyfriend, professional private investigator Lance O'Leary. He's played by Patric Knowles this time, in a more flippant manner than Dick Purcell's in "Mystery House"; as a matter of fact, this entire film contains more comedy than the other two films in the "series" I've seen so far. His summation of the case at the end effectively delays the naming of the culprit, though one plot twist is quite outrageous (especially the fact that only 2 people were in on it). A biggest mystery than those presented within this film: whatever happened to Jean Benedict? IMDb clearly has her date of birth wrong (no way she was 61 in 1938!), and she has very few credits. She was one seriously sexy scene-stealer in "The Patient In Room 18". ** out of 4.
BaronBl00d Patric Knowles plays a detective, having just failed to solve his first case, admitted to Thatcher Private Hospital to relax and get over anxiety problems(walking in the middle of the street in pajamas, etc...)In employ there is the nurse that he is smitten with, a trio of suspicious doctors who seem to have all lost any moral character they once had, a drunken Irishman(?) who is a jack of all trades it seems, and a wealthy investment banker that has hypochondriac persuasions. Throw in some romantic intrigue, some want-to-be romantic intrigue, a wastrel nephew needing cash bad, and some other minor plot "twists" and you have the uncle banker getting killed because of some valuable radium lying on his chest. Knowles is to the rescue much to the chagrin of an annoying policeman investigating the crime. As mysteries go, this one is passable but is nothing really more than fluff. The mood is light, the mystery is light, and the denouement is light. Knowles carries off the charming lightness very well as does most of the cast. All the character actors are very good at looking guilty. Ann Sheridan plays Knowles's love interest and is credible in her thankless role. At barely an hour in length, the film does have a nice, fast pace and is fairly entertaining. The solution to the crime was, for me at least, somewhat crude in application but the film does have some interesting merits and is never trying to take itself too terribly serious.
Ron Oliver Private Thatcher Hospital is suffering a spate of murders, but THE PATIENT IN ROOM 18 - a young detective recovering from a nervous breakdown - is determined to find the killer.Fast-moving & fun, this is another example of the comedy crime picture that Warner Brothers was so expert at producing almost without effort. Casts & plots could be shuffled endlessly, with very predictable results. While this assembly line approach created few classics, audience enjoyment could usually be assured.Patric Knowles & Ann Sheridan spark the action here. As a convalescing detective & stern head nurse with romantic difficulties in their recent past, they keep the plot racing - especially after murder rears its ugly head. Knowles, who never quite graduated to starring roles in major pictures, shows a fine flair for comedy. Sleepwalking down the street dressed in pajamas & bowler, he is indeed a very droll sight. Sheridan shows flashes of the talent that would eventually make her an important star at Warner Brothers.Unfortunately, the two most potentially interesting characters in the film - Eric Stanley's English valet & Greta Meyer's German cook - are given very little to do. And what about the film's other mystery: just what is so special about Room 18?