Imagine Agatha Christie's Miss Marple in her prime.She would have married a private,unbeknown to her new husband's superiors.As they did not have time enough for a well-deserved honeymoon,they decide to do it military style,that is to say inside the camp.Of course they have to hide away from the staff.To make the matters worse,very mysterious (and even criminal ) things happen and 'official-secrets" might not be secret anymore.In spite of Boris Karloff's presence,it is not really a horror movie,but rather a whodunit:it is not difficult to guess who the murderer is and anyway we have a lady detective.She came "without warning" and she will be very insightful.

Boris Karloff stars in a strange stage based mystery set on a military base that has to do with the death of a weapons researcher. The film is set in motion when a bunch of soldiers on leave pile into a boat and head back to the island base. One of the men is smuggling his new wife over in the hope of a nice quiet wedding night. In the process of finding a quiet place to consummate the marriage they stumble upon a dead body. The base is locked down and a sleuth is flown in.Weird mix of wedding night comedy (which really doesn't work) and fast paced mystery this is a rather schizophrenic film that would have been so much better had the comedy been left behind. The mystery is a dark and troubling tale with a great deal of violence and suspicion. The mystery is played for all its worth and it makes me wonder what the play the film is based on is like.The cast is mostly excellent, only Marie Pratt, as the only woman in the cast, is less than good. The real treat here is Boris Karloff as one of the suspects. He gets a real work out as an actor going through a great deal of emotion. It was always clear that he could do more than horror parts to anyone who really watched his performances, and this is a film that proves the point.Very short, it runs around 55 minutes, this movie moves like the wind and it never gets boring or too comedic. Absolutely worth a look if you run across it.The mystery is 8 out of 10 The comedy is 3 out of 10 (thankfully its very brief) 6 out of 10 over all

(THIS REVIEW IS FOR THE DVD Invisible Menace/Night of Terror)This DVD presents Karloff and Lugosi, each in a film that is not part of their usual fare seen in other collections.THE INVISIBLE MENACE is a Warner Brother's quickie (clocking in at under 60 minutes) that shows that Boris Karloff could do far more than play monsters. Most reviews of this film right it off as a poor example of his talents. I disagree. In it's 54 minute running time it manages to combine murder, red herrings, and an extremely quick paced mystery. The comedic antics of Marie Wilson and Eddie Craven may be a bit trying at times for those looking for pure mystery, but they are far less intrusive than many other mystery films where comedy is injected at random. At least their situation is part of the plot. As to Boris's role being beneath him, I tend to look at as an extension of his abilities to create a character. His gray hair, glasses and quiet manner (except when he is gesturing wildly pleading for justice) are a precursor to his role as Professor Linden in The Linden Tree, which he would play on the New York stage in the late 1940's. Overall it is an enjoyable little film.The second feature, with the generic title NIGHT OF TERROR, comes as a welcome surprise. I had only seen it listed on Bela Lugosi film bibliographies. It is a variation on the old dark house thriller, with moving panels, tunnels, a gathering of heirs for the reading of the will, etc. This film has the advantage of Lugosi's performance. Reading other reviews of the film led me to believe that he was "wasted" in the part of Degar. Once again I tend to disagree. Bela is in almost every scene of the picture. His mysterious delivery of his dialogue is perfectly in line with the film's eerie atmosphere. As for him being "wasted" he turns out to be the most intelligent person of the lot-including the police and a wise cracking newspaper reporter. Being a B picture, and over the years being subject to scrutiny, the plot discrepancies are pretty evident, but overall it is an entertaining film. As to the peculiar ending, it is no more quirky that Edward Van Sloan's prologue to FRANKENSTEIN or his epilogue to Dracula (cut from most prints of the film)

What in the world was Karloff doing in this B-picture quicky years after his triumph as The Frankenstein Monster??? Karloff tries his best but nothing could save this snoozer. The plot summary pretty much gives you the entire plot. Tries to be a sassy sexy comedy, a thriller and a who dunnit all at once. Fails miserable at all 3! The "comedy" is sophomoric. There are no real "thrills". The "mystery" wouldn't fool a 5 year old. Lots of good character actors wasted (Regis Toomey, the perpetual sergeant/policeman, "Dobie Gillis'" father Frank Faylen, and others). For Karloff completists only!