The Amazing Dr. Clitterhouse (1938)

Directed by Anatole Litvak. Starring Edward G. Robinson, Claire Trevor, Donald Crisp, Humphrey Bogart, Allen Jenkins, Gale Page, Maxie Rosenbloom, Thurston Hall.

Odd but amusing crime story of a doctor (Robinson) fascinated by criminal behavior and psychosis, so he decides to “study” their kind by becoming one; specifically, he swipes jewelry so he can moonlight as a thief known as “The Professor” and get in with a major fence (Trevor) and a ruthless gangster (Bogart). Robinson’s in fine form, but the unpredictability of the early scenes transitions to more routine heist and blackmail plotting later on, capped off by a far-fetched courtroom finale. A decade later, Robinson, Trevor and Bogie would all reunite for the superior gangster drama, Key Largo. As in Hollywood Hotel and Boy Meets Girl, you can hear Ronald Reagan’s voice as an uncredited radio announcer.

63/100