This witty whodunnit outclasses most of its pot-boiler sequels. The jewel-theft and dead body set-up is conventional but the way it works out is stylishly paced and full of entertaining sidelights. The Falcon's volatile fiancée is hilarious, and unfazed when he approaches her for the price of a meal dressed as a tramp. I like his byline in a newspaper story: "FALCON EVADES POLICE - Playboy Criminologist Sought in Mystery Slaying". Wendy Barrie as his stand-in Doctor Watson (while "Goldie" Locke is unavoidably detained by crooks) is more sceptical about his personal qualities than starry-eyed: she knows she's the other woman. It adds up to a sophisticated and playful take on a routine B-film formula, which has some of the élan and sparkle you get in early 1930s genre films.

They will start at 6AM est.All of the movies starring George Sanders and Tom Conway. Set up your Dvrs. Starting with the "The Gay Falcon" Gay Falcon, (1942) A society sleuth tries to break up an insurance scam.Cast: George Sanders, Lynn Bari, James Gleason, Allen Jenkins. A Date With The Falcon. The Falcon Takes Over. The Falcon's Brother. The Falcon Strikes Back. The Falcon In Danger. The Falcon And The Co-Eds. The Falcon Out West. The Falcon In Mexico. The Falcon In Hollywood. The Falcon In San Francisco. Personally, I prefer Conway to Sanders. Just as I enjoy the Falcon over the Saint or the other "B" detectives. Set back and enjoy each of these wonderful movies.

Gay Falcon, The (1941) ** 1/2 (out of 4) First film in RKO's Falcon series has George Sanders playing the Detective who must try and track down a jewel thief who's also leaving bodies piled up. This is the first in the series that I've seen and this one here wasn't too bad but it's still not a good movie by any means. The film goes by pretty quickly with some minor laughs but the mystery aspect isn't too interested, although there is a nice twist at the end. Sanders gives a good performance in the lead as he's able to be quite charming and sly in a good way. Allen Jenkins steals the show as the Falcon's assistant and Wendy Barrie is pretty good as the woman who goes to the Falcon for help.

At the request of his girlfriend, Gay Laurence has stepped out of the detective business to become a stockbroker. Bored out of his brilliant mind, Gay jumps at the chance when a young lady tells him of the socialite Maxine Wood, who throws parties every few weeks but has had problems with robberies each time. With the police unable to catch the thief, Gay goes to the party to help out but, on this occasion, the crime turns to murder – putting Gay and Goldie right in the middle of it.I have never watched a Falcon film before and I took the opportunity to watch this film when BBC2 ran a mini-series of the films in the early morning during the summer. The title is innocent enough and it is only time (and the change in language) that has made it seem rather inappropriate – certainly such a film (or a character) would not be include the word gay if these films were made today! Aside from that obvious remark, this is a pretty enjoyable film if you are prepared for what it is trying to be – a very light, amusing little mystery that entertains. The semi-tongue in cheek tone to the film takes away from the actual mystery plot but it is still just about interesting enough to engage.What the film does better is to inject a nice comic tone into everything. The action involves a touch of comedy at all times and plenty of the lines and side-issues (the girlfriend). The acting mostly follows this pattern with Sanders surprising me with a very light touch – he really seemed to be enjoying himself! I have only seen Sanders in more serious roles and I did enjoy seeing him in relaxed mode. Support is great from Jenkins; his is hardly a well-written character (he is only a standard comic sidekick) but he plays well and is actually quite funny in his couple of scenes. Barrie is quite fun and makes for an attractive love interest while Vale is good enough to make her subplot part of the movie rather than it seeming tacked on. Shields, Dunn and Brophy are all amusing as the usual inept cops of the genre!Overall this is not a great film but, if you know what to expect, it does manage to be entertaining. The actual plot is not that good but just about does enough to keep you watching but it is the comic tone and well-pitched acting that makes it fun to watch. At just over an hour running time, I found it to be the film equivalent of a nice little snack – certainly not filling but enjoyable for the short time it takes to finish it!