THE AMAZING DR CLITTERHOUSE, 1938
|
 | Search 1,000s of MOVIES to WATCH |  |
| WATCH today's top shorts |  GREATEST SEX VIDEOSWatch the best of internet sex scenes! |  WATCH Today's MOVIESBest of NEW films on the NET! |
 SUBMIT your SCRIPTSVoted #1 screenplay contest in the world! |
 NEW MOVIE REVIEWSRead Today's POSTED REVIEWS |
 SEE 1000s of PICTURESBest of photos, images and pics |
 MOVIES YEAR BY YEARPages from 1900 to present |
 500+ MOVIE GENRESSee films with various plots and situations |
 TOP 100 ACTRESSES of all-timeSee the list! Pages of each actress |
 TOP 100 ACTORS of all-timeSee the list! Pages of each actor |
 TOP 100 DIRECTORS of all-timeSee the list! Pages of each director |
 TOP 100 GREATEST MOVIE SCENESWatch the top movie scenes of all-time! |
THE AMAZING DR CLITTERHOUSE, 1938
Movie Reviews
Directed by: Anatole Litvak
Cast: Edward G. Robinson, Claire Trevor, Humphrey Bogart, Allen Jenkins, Donald Crisp
Review by Jarred Thomas
SYNOPSIS:
Dr. Clitterhouse is fascinated with the working of the criminal mind. His interest is so deep that he finds the best way to observe criminals in action is to become one himself.
CLICK HERE and watch 2009 MOVIES FOR FREE!
REVIEW:
Early in his career, Bogart played in a lot of supporting roles with then big stars Edward G. Robinson and James Cagney. While still one of the main characters in each picture, he was however not the hero and at times mostly the villain. The Amazing Dr. Clitterhouse, a terrible name for a movie, has a strange plot that defies plausibility and really comes off silly and inane dragging two iconic actors back into the underbelly of crime, but with a more light hearted approach.
The distinguished Dr. Clitterhouse (Robinson) has an interest in gangsters, specifically their psychology. How they work, what motivates them, their response to crime, to violence, and any other task associated with being a gangster. So, to learn more about criminals, he works his way into a prominent gang after stealing jewelry and selling it to the head female boss, Jo Keller (Trevor).
Jo becomes impressed with the doctor, now nicknamed the Professor by Jo’s crew, and decides to use him as another partner in her crime organization. But that doesn’t sit well with Rocks (Bogart), another member, as the Professor starts to rise in the rankings of the crew.
At this time, Bogart, Robinson and Cagney were well known for playing gangsters, an image they tried to break away from. Bogart’s performance is not challenging, you can see a hint of distain for the character in just about every scene Bogart is in. Even though Robinson, who does best distinguished ascent, appears to have fun with the Professor character and does a nice job with his comedic timing. The whole movie is nonsensical, with an ending that is downright absurd.
The scenes with Robinson and Bogart are not compelling, and if anything, that’s a sign of a bad movie. While Robinson enjoys the role, Bogart’s dislike comes through creating an uneven balance between the two veteran actors. The chemistry is missing, making the film less captivating or even entertaining.
There’s no surprise that gangster movies were popular in the 30’s and 40’s, however, it was obvious that the studios were milking the genre for everything its worth. The originality is absent, the witty dialogue gone, and the sanity of the film is completely missing. The paycheck must have been sizeable to convince Bogart and Robinson to take their parts, but Hollywood was different at the time because in large part of the studio systems which forced actors to take certain roles with or without their consent. That’s not to say Bogart was a victim of that, but the system may have played a part.
The Amazing Dr. Clitterhouse is not one the better movies for the revered actors. It has some funny moments, but those are spread thin and not enough to provide any entertainment. If you’re looking for a great quality film that stars Bogart and Robinson, watch Key Largo, or any of the other four films that the duo did together. Anything other than The Amazing Dr. Clitterhouse.
