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Sadly Over-hyped

Nice effects though.

an ambitious but ultimately ineffective debut endeavor.

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

"Voice of the Whistler" is an interesting entry in the Whistler series in several aspects. The first half of the movie will lead you to believe that it will be the story of a dying man trying to improve his life before he passes on. It is treated pretty seriously, and there is nothing chilling or horrifying about the movie during this first half. Things do start to get darker in the second half of the movie, but not right away - it's only in the last fifteen or so minutes that the movie gets seriously dark. And the way the movie unfolds during those last fifteen minutes feels more like a noir of the period than a suspense drama. Although my above description of the movie may make it sound to be somewhat of a mess, it's actually executed fairly well. It's fairly briskly paced and never boring - you'll be wondering what exactly will happen in the end (though the flash forward scene at the beginning of the movie does take out some of the punch at the end.) This is a nice little B movie that does its job in just sixty minutes.

Cheaply made entry into the Whistler series of films produced in the 1940s and directed with skill by soon-to-be showman/horror director extraordanaire William Castle. This is one of Castle's earlier films and you can see his burgeoning skills as a director - especially in the third act of this film. The story here concerns a wealthy industrialist taking time from his job and identity to make himself better though time is against him. The doctors tell him he is sick because of a lack of friends. He therefore gets some friends - and then makes a business agreement with a pretty nurse to marry him for six months(what time he has been told he has allotted) and then she upon his death will never want for nothing financially. Well, she had a fiancée and the story then moves to a weird love triangle in a lighthouse that has been turned into living quarters. This film has quite a few obvious flaws. For starters, the acting is very poor. Richard Dix who starred in most of the films in this series is at best bland. His range of emotion wouldn't cast a blip on a radar of any magnitude. He is overall acceptable but nothing grand to be sure. His fellow actors don't fair any better - in fact - much worse with the exception of Rhys Williams who plays the affable Ernie. Williams has screen presence and acting ability and innate charm for the camera. He works. Pity the rest do not. Lynn Merrick is okay as the mean-spirited, nasty, avaricious beauty that makes the deal with Dix only to regret it later. Merrick can be seen in some scenes looking at the camera early on in the film as can many of the smaller role actors. Castle apparently does not have much to work with here and it shows. Nonetheless, the film is short and does move quickly. The end is fairly inventive and this is certainly a watchable film at the very least.

Voice of the Whistler (1945) *** (out of 4) Fourth film in Columbia's series is once again directed by William Castle but he also co-wrote the screenplay here. This time out Richard Dix plays a rich man who will dead within a two month period. Not wanting to spend his last months alone, he offers a nurse (Lynn Merrick) a great opportunity. She marries him to bring him happiness and he'll leave her his millions. They go through with the plan but all of the sudden he starts to get healthy again. This is certainly the best film in the series so far and it works mainly due to the great story they are working with. There's a lot of twists and turns throughout the short 60-minute running time but it all leads to a highly believable ending. Dix is very good in his role as is Merrick and the two work perfectly well together. The screenplay offers both of their characters a chance to grow, which certainly isn't normal for this type of B movie. Castle does a very good job with his direction and proves he could direct something without gimmicks.

RICHARD DIX was nearing the end of his career in "The Whistler" series and this one was made just four years before his untimely death from heart attack. He plays a rich industrialist who takes the advice of his doctors and seeks relaxation away from the pressures of work which are killing him.LYNN MERRICK is a blonde nurse who takes an interest in the strangely quiet man. She's in love with a young doctor but gives in to the idea of marrying Dix (at his suggestion) so that when he dies within a few months, she would be a rich woman inheriting all of his wealth. She presents the plan to her fiancé (JAMES CARDWELL) but he rejects it flatly and she goes ahead with her plan to marry Dix for his money.What happens after that is what makes the film interesting, since the plot is anything but predictable. Suffice it to say that Cardwell returns to the lighthouse where Merrick is living her married life to Dix, and the plot thickens as a murder plan develops that goes awry.Interesting "Whistler" story with the loneliness theme nicely played out amid the lone atmosphere of a Maine lighthouse.Summing up: Intriguing and better than average entry in this series.