Associate producer: Robert Lord. Executive producer: Hal B. Wallis. Copyright 8 March 1941 by Warner Brothers Pictures, Inc. A Warner Brothers-First National picture. New York opening at the Strand: 14 March 1941. U.S. release: 8 March 1941. Australian release: 12 June 1941. 10 reels. 8,699 feet. 96 minutes.SYNOPSIS: A mystery comedy of manners featuring a socialite who writes detective novels (under an assumed name) without the knowledge of his wife and more importantly, his mother-in-law.COMMENT: Errol Flynn made only four comedies in his entire movie career. This is the third—and a delightfully amusing, thoroughly entertaining and utterly enjoyable outing it is too! Although the comedy is fast and furious, the situations become so believable, the mystery itself turns into a fascinatingly suspenseful exercise. All the players approach their roles with exactly the right injections of carefree enthusiasm. Flynn is rippingly debonair. His scenes with waspish Lucile Watson (whom he was to battle again in his fourth and final comedy, "Never Say Goodbye") are laced with diverting barbs which he delivers (and avoids) with charming ease. Also good to see the alluring Brenda Marshall (actually more colorful and picturesque here than in her previous Flynn vehicle, The Sea Hawk), plus the ever-loyal Allen Jenkins. Co-star Ralph Bellamy, as always, provides some of the movie's principal pleasures. The script also provides delicious encounters with other appealing players, including Lee Patrick, Alan Hale, William Frawley, Grant Mitchell and sneeringly sinister Turhan Bey (whom we find so much more adept as a slippery villain than a cut-price romantic lead). Hard to believe that Lloyd Bacon is the director responsible for this vigorous ensemble playing. He also keeps the plot snapping along at scintillating speed, expertly making the most of the film's marvelous production values. In short, "Footsteps in the Dark" comes across as a most agreeably acted, lightly humorous, tongue-in-cheek, impeccably mounted entertainment dessert.

The only thing that keeps this movie from receiving the worst possible rating is that the fine cast all give first-rate performances. First-rate performances of an amazingly bad script, unfortunately.How could Jack Warner have thought this would work? It's confusing, uninteresting, and no, not funny. Seeing the stars of The Sea Hawk from just the year before - Errol Flynn, Brenda Marshall, Alan Hale - try to make this come alive is almost painful.And who thought of trying to pass Lee Patrick, a fine comedian, off as a burlesque queen???? Her number is downright embarrassing, and it's not really her fault. She was completely wrong for the part.Skip this movie. Yes, Flynn is his usual charming himself, but that certainly can't save this mistake.

It seems lots of people didn't like this film very much but I absolutely loved it. Flynn plays blue blood investment adviser Francis Monroe Warren II with blue blood clients, a blue blood wife, and a blue blood social life. All of this blue blood is making Francis feel tired and run down, so he leads a double life to spice things up. At night and at odd hours during the work day he concocts murder mysteries and covers his absences at home by telling his wife that he was at some board meeting. His most recent publication - under a pen name of course - has his wealthy friends aghast because he used them as characters in his book and only slightly changed their names. The town's whole social register is looking for the real name of this author so they can sue him for damages. Francis' antics begin to catch up with him when he is blackmailed by someone who knows about his double life.Pretty soon Francis is involved in a real murder mystery involving stolen diamonds, a burlesque queen, threatening letters from an anonymous person, and clues that seem to point back to his own wife as a suspect. On top of everything, his wife and mother-in-law become suspicious of his behavior and have him followed, with the detective drawing all the wrong conclusions.This is a very different kind of role for Flynn, but he brought to it all of the things that made his swashbuckling films such fun. As Robin Hood he was continually laughing in the face of danger, here he just grins at it, but he still seems to get the upper hand in every situation - always suave and in control. If you want to watch something that is just plain fun I highly recommend this one.

A foolish and somewhat tiresome script about an aspiring novelist who moonlights as a crime-solving detective in his spare time. It's painful to watch an able cast of actors cope with this nonsense. Flynn wanted to play something other than swashbuckling roles so the studio gave in. Unfortunately, his feeble attempts at comedy are not a pleasure to watch. Later in his career he did manage to develop a style for this kind of farce--but not here. The wasted cast includes Brenda Marshall, Ralph Bellamy, Alan Hale and Lee Patrick. It has a few halfway interesting moments but not enough to sustain a running time of 96 minutes. Only Ralph Bellamy manages to inject some dry humor into his role as a dentist--but Flynn throughout appears more foolish than funny. Watch at your own risk.