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Simple and well acted, it has tension enough to knot the stomach.

The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

Dorothy Davenport's fifth film to direct, "The Woman Condemned" will give mystery fans something to ponder during its little over an hour running time. Previously, Davenport had helmed "The Road to Ruin" (1928), "Linda" (1929), "Sucker Money" (1933), and a remake of "The Road to Ruin" in 1934. When Davenport wasn't calling the shots, she racked up twenty screenwriting credits. Popular radio vocalist Jane Merrick vanishes after she announces her plans to take a vacation. Merrick's admirer, radio producer Jim Wallace, dreads the prospect that Consolidated Dairies will withdraw their sponsorship of her program permanently if she doesn't return. Losing this account will irreparably damage the radio station's finances. Wallace worries about Jane and fears the worst may have happened after her maid Sally refuses to divulge her whereabouts, so he resorts to a private detective agency to allay his fears. "There is something strange about the whole affair," Wallace tells the detective bureau chief, "she might even be in danger." The bureau chief explains that policy dictates a detective from another town must be assigned to the case so she won't be recognized. Eventually, the police nab a suspicious female prowler snooping around the balcony window at Jane's apartment after dark. The police take the woman to night court. Smart aleck crime reporter Jerry Beal is immediately infatuated with the dame, who has been identified as Barbara Hammond. He intervenes on her behalf. Not only does he explain to the judge that Barbara is his fiancée, but also that she is "a compulsive practical joker." The judge isn't impressed with Jerry's trumped up tale, and he decides to marry him to Barbara, then releases her into Beale's custody. When she objects that she isn't married, the judge weds them, because Beale had pulled a fast one the previous evening in the case of a drunken bum. The bum, we learn, was Beale's bootlegger and he couldn't get liquor with the guy in jail. Although Barbara assumes that Jerry can get the judge to annul their marriage, she schedules a dinner date later that week on Thursday. Afterward, Jerry drops by to see Jim and learns some of the facts about Jane's vanishing. Like the news hound that he is, Jerry wants to write the story, but Jim convinces to refrain from doing it. Jerry and Barbara dine out, but she refuses to tell him anything about her activities. Later, she goes back to Jane's apartment and sneaks inside where she eavesdrops on a discussion between Jane and an ethnic-speaking guy. For all practical purposes, this man is trying to shake down Jane and wants a stake from her. No sooner has the guy left Jane's apartment than Jane sees an armed killer. She spots him in the mirror and screams as he cuts loose with his revolver. She sprawls lifelessly to the floor, and then the lights go out. The next door neighbors hear the crash of the gunshot, and the husband investigates. Meantime, Barbara checks the body, then trips and loses her flashlight. The first thing that she picks up is a revolver, and the next door neighbor Henry C. Benham appears with his gun drawn. He orders Barbara to dispose of her firearm and he sends his wife, who ventures into the apartment moments later, and screams at the sight of Jane strewn on the floor. She calls the police, and they arrest Barbara. Jerry joins the police, but he cannot believe that Barbara could have killed her. Barbara refuses to give the cops any information. Now, more than ever, Jerry is set on clearing Barbara, and he plays do-it-yourself-gumshoe. His investigation leads him to a Dr. Wagner's private sanitarium. Jerry cannot believe his eyes when he sees who is on the surgeon's table, evidently undergoing an operation. Jerry persuades a reluctant Jim to come and see for himself. No sooner have Jerry and Jim sneaked into the sanitarium that Dr. Wagner gets the drop on them at gunpoint. Initially, he looks as if he is going to conduct an experiment on them when Jane's house maid, Sally walks in and recognizes Jim Wallace. Wagner orders his henchmen to remove their gags and bonds, and he explains to their satisfaction what has really happened. Naturally, Jim is relieved but amazed by this turn of events. Nevertheless, he doesn't understand what has happened.The revelations that follow would spoil the film for first-time viewers. "A Woman Condemned" has a slick ending that works out happily for everybody involved. You won't figure out the mystery unless you've seen a mystery similar to this one.

A radio singing star suddenly takes a "vacation" without explanation, and cuts herself off from everybody. Her radio station hires a detective agency to find out what's going on, and the agency sends a female detective to work the case, but when the "star" is killed, the detective winds up being charged with her murder.This is a very low-buck effort put out by very low-buck producer Willis Kent. Production values are chintzy in the extreme, with poor photography, tinny and unsteady sound and extremely choppy editing. The plot is overly complicated, the dialog is lame and the acting is just awful, although attractive Claudia Dell as the detective gives it her best shot and does have her moments. Director Dorothy Davenport didn't have much to work with in front of and behind the camera, and she didn't do much with them. Very poor effort all around. Don't bother with it.

Well now, here's the thing - for this movie to work, you'll have to accept the following - a woman who's murdered is alive again at the end of the movie, a detective stops interrogating the dead woman's fiancée because a newspaper reporter asked him not to, and that same reporter, smitten by a good looking blonde hauled into night court for suspicious behavior, winds up getting married to her in exchange for the judge letting her off the hook. Are you following me on this? I can't tell you how many times I paused and rewound the picture to repeat scenes that just didn't make any sense. In the end, the blonde (Claudia Dell) and the reporter (Richard Hemingway) remained married, but I have no idea how they came to that decision. In fact, I can't figure out how the film maker came to the decision to make this flick. Oh I suppose there's some entertainment value here for just the sheer nonsense of it all, but it would have been nice if even a couple of the pieces fit. Still, I'm not ready to add this one to my Top Ten Worst list. I think that night club scene with the feathered ladies might have saved it. But why was it in the movie? I just don't know.

This isn't the clearest story ever plotted. I know what happens, but tying to explain it with out giving away too much is going to be rather difficult. Basically a woman takes a "vacation" from the radio program on which she is the star. Its not explained why, though her overly emoted good bye to her would be boyfriend suggests that there is an ominous reason. At some point she is killed and an innocent woman is blamed. Will the real killer ever be caught? What was the secret that forced the dead woman from the radio? Will we remain awake long enough to find out? Simple this is not. This is a complicated tale of murder thats interesting despite the fact its very talky, over emoted and just a tad loopy. Its the type of movie that keeps your interest simply because you want to know whats going on not because its very good. Actually it was so dull and talky that it was putting me to sleep, however I had to fight it because I had to know what was going on. If you want to see a movie that makes you stay with it to the end because you have to see whats going on give it a try. If you want to see a film that actually good try something else.