Those magnificent B movies from the poverty row studios such as Republic and Monogram were often more enjoyable than the all time classics of the A studios. Sometimes, their fast and furious dialog and non-stop action had you hooked even during the credits. They were more of an influence for the new crop of directors rising up in the 1950's and 60's, and today, they are considered an art form all of their own, regardless of the motivation of making a quick buck."Grissley's Millions" ranks among some of the best that I've seen, mixing dark humor in with the typical story of an elderly hated head of a family on death watch as greedy relatives stand by. For Virginia Grey, the only relative who seemed to care for the humorously cantankerous Robert Barratt, her timing is really bad as her secret estranged husband shows up and is allegedly quickly murdered by the dying old coot. Within minutes, Barratt is dead too, by poisoning, and after Grey is named beneficiary in his will, she becomes the main suspect in his murder...and the target of intent to kill as well.Along comes detective Paul Kelly, at first antagonistic towards her in his search for Grey's criminal husband, and later her only protector. A superb supporting cast includes Elisabeth Risdon as Grey's seemingly sweet aunt, Adele Mara as Risdon's gold digging daughter, Donald Douglas as Grey's suitor determined to get his hands on her estate, and Eily Malyon as Barratt's stern housekeeper. Thus flies by deliciously fast, with the culprit having a wonderful melodramatic confession. I was lucky enough to find this in its full version, not in the much edited TV print that usually turns up for most of Republic's films.

Old man Robert Barrat (Grissly) is on his deathbed and summons his relatives to his house. There will be a will that everyone is keen to hear when he passes away cos Barrat is seriously rich. Well, things don't pan out as anticipated. We get a murder-mystery that carries us through a fairly short duration in which quite a lot happens, so pay attention or you might miss some plot lines.It's a film that carries you along and serves its purpose as an entertaining mystery-thriller film. A who-dunnit. I didn't guess correctly so I reckon it's a surprise. And Virginia Grey (Katherine) is good in the lead role. There are some good ideas thrown in, eg, 2 bodies in one coffin, and of course, there is a bit of romance at the end. Thankfully, the romantic angle is never sentimental so we get no time wasted on that nonsense.

GRISSLY'S MILLIONS: 1945 Another low rent programmer put out by Republic Pictures. This one is a murder mystery with Paul Kelly and Virginia Grey as the leads.The story revolves around the death of a small town millionaire. The man, Robert Barrat, is a nasty old codger who was famous for being tight with a dime. Waiting for the man to die, is a long list of relatives hoping to cash in on the will. These include, Elisabeth Risdon, Adele Mara, Byron Fougler, Joan Blair and several others.Virginia Grey is the niece of Barrat, and the one who has been taking care of the old man in his last days. Grey had just returned to the small town from the big city. She had run off as a teen and gotten married. Now she was back after the death of her husband.Now, Grey's not so dead husband, Paul Fix, shows up. He has heard about the old guy being on his last legs. He hopes to cash in on anything Grey might get. Fix is a smooth talking con man and crook. Not far behind Fix is Police Investigator, Paul Kelly. Kelly has been on the trail of Fix half way across the country. He would like several "words" with the fraudster.Anyways, there are soon two dead bodies, Barrat and Fix in play. There is bit with both being buried in the same casket. This bit of foul play is soon uncovered and the medical types now discover Barrat had died of poisoning.The rest of the film is spent with everyone trying to figure out who killed who? The suspects include Miss Grey, crooked lawyer Donald Douglas, and all the assorted relatives. Miss Grey is the main suspect, with plenty of evidence that seems to turn up just at the most inopportune moment.Grey swears innocence but her only ally is the cop, Kelly. Kelly suspects lawyer Douglas is behind the frame up. Douglas had asked Grey to marry him and been turned down. There are heaps of red herrings tossed at the viewer before the real killer is unmasked.This is nowhere as silly as I make it sound. Republic cranked out hundreds of these low budget films for the bottom of the double bill. Most ran for between, 54 and 65 minutes. If you are fan of this low rent fare, you should enjoy this one.The director here was, John English. English started out helming serials for Republic. These include the likes of ZORRO"S FIGHTING LEGION, THE FIGHTING DEVIL DOGS, DICK TRACY RETURNS, MYSTERIOUS DOCTOR Satan, DICK TRAY'S G-MEN and half a dozen others.

The unjustly-maligned Republic Pictures churned out a number of modest 'B' thrillers in its heyday, and this is one of the best. The murder of an eccentric, elderly multi-millionaire brings his money-hungry relatives flocking to his gloomy, isolated mansion--as well as the police to investigate whodunnit. Paul Kelly & Virginia Grey top the cast, the suspense is packed into a swift, unnerving 56 minutes--and the revelation of the killer (trying to hurl Miss Grey to her death from a rickety wooden bridge) is genuinely eerie and terrifying. An "A" job on a "B" budget--which I've been trying to track down for over 40 years to no avail. Will someone please make these forgotten Republic "sleepers" available for cable-or-VHS viewing? "Whispering Footsteps" ranks in the same class and category.