Wordiezett So much average

Mjeteconer Just perfect...

Konterr Brilliant and touching

Afouotos Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

MartinHafer I was reading the review by Calvinnme and agree heartily. If the viewer never saw the previous Hildegard Withers films that starred Edna May Oliver, you might enjoy "Murder on a Bridle Path" even more. While Helen Broderick is very good in this role, Oliver was just better as Hildegard. Apparently, Oliver and the studio had a 'parting of the ways' and they unsuccessfully tried Broderick and later Zasu Pitts in Oliver's place. But, no matter how they tried, no one could match the charming crankiness of the original! The film starts with a blonde lady being disagreeable with several folks--a clear giveaway that she'll soon be murdered (it's a standard cliché in mystery films of the time). VERY soon after, she's killed while out riding her horse. Again, Calvinnme was right--this character wasn't developed enough and her death came too quickly. The police assume she died by accident but soon they notice a few clues that indicate she was NOT killed by being kicked by a horse. Around this time, Hildegarde shows up and immediately begins digging for clues. Like any murder mystery of the era, there are lots of dead ends and twists--along with a VERY florid ending involving the murderer--and it's by far the best part of the movie.This is a pretty good mystery film. Unfortunately, the snappy dialog from Withers isn't as obvious--not just due to Broderick but because the writing is a bit less snappy. Enjoyable but that's really about all.

sol ***SPOILERS*** It's when Violet Feverel, Sheila Terry, is found trampled to death on Central Park's Bridle Path it's assumed by the police headed by the cigar chewing Inspector Piper, James Gleason, that it all was a tragic accident. Violet had taken a horse out for a morning ride and lost control of the animal with her ending up getting killed by it. It's when school teacher and part-time sleuth Hildergard Winters, Helen Broderick, shows up at the scene that the open and shut case was reopened in that Violet's death wasn't accidental but cold blooded murder.Inspector Piper with Hildegard's help uncovers a number of people who had it in for Violet and may well have gone so far as murdering her. There's Violet's estranged husband Don Gregg, Leslie Fenton, who was released from prison just a day before her death and is considered the #1 suspect in Violet's murder. There's also Violet's sister Barbara, Louise Latimer, and fiancée Eddie Fry, Owen Davis Jr, who never got along with her and can't seem to come up with an alibi in where they were at the time of her death.It's later when Don Gregg's old man Pat Gregg, John Milter, is almost found dead at the Gregg Mansion in Elmont Long Island the attention turns to his already suspected of murder son Don who's now suspected by Inspector Piper in trying to murder him and make it look like an accident! Like he's suspected of doing to his wife Violet! It's when old man Gregg is found dead in his study watching the races, with a telescope, at the Belmont Park racetrack from his third floor window that Hildegard suspect his death was not a heart attack but murder. And the murderer was someone very close to Pat Gregg who wanted him out of the way not for monetary but for very very personal reasons!***SPOILERS*** It's then that all he loose ends in this very confusing murder case all tie together and it all had to do with a horse race that the killer, by having the money he was to bet on it, was kept from betting on! A bit talky but still very entertaining murder mystery with actress Helen Broderick as armature sleuth Hildegard Withers having a hard time keeping a straight face in her scenes with stable-boy High Pockets, Willie Best, who with his laid back and Stephen Fetchet style of talking has her desperately trying to keep from cracking up in every scene she's in with him. The award for ham acting honors in the movie has to go to the murderer himself! The exposed, by Hildegard, murdered gets so caught up with his big scene in the film in his explaining why he did it, murdered Violet & old man Gregg, that he loses his footing and breaks through a second floor railing in the Gregg Mansion and falls to his death!

tedg This series started out as one of the many experiments in building a detective narrative (where we share the unrolling of the narrative with a character) based on specific personality types. The original idea was to harden the Miss Marple type and recast her as brusque matron with a mischievous bent. And the detective would be a snappy, skinny hardnosed type who ends up a softy with this schoolmarm. In the first episode, they actually run off to get married, a situation forgotten later.But all these experiments ran out of gas, even the "Thin Man" thread. By this edition, we have a whole different set of goals, and of course a different Hildegard. This woman isn't old, imperious, thickbottomed and selfish. She's a much hipper soul and in any case she doesn't have the focus any more.And despite there being a younger sister cast for her figure, this is all about the men. And the characters we (as guys) create. Its nothing more than that, and as big as that. (The plot revolves around an exhusband thrown in "alimony jail" because of slow payments.)Gleason is at his most extreme, strutting with a smile. Its a smile of an actor winking at the audience, something that was passed through (in my small experience) Red Skelton, Burt Reynolds, Bruce Willis.But the extraordinary thing — and this may not be readable to some — is that it is all done by acting with hats. Its an amazing experience. These are theatrical hats, a bit over-sized. All the important facial expressions have a hat equivalent or compliment. One of the men actors is a black man playing a specific character type, a dim, stepinfetchit "boy" named Highpockets. In life, it reflects as a stereotype and is harmful because no one can deny racism. But as a character its fantastic and comes less from society directly than a long and honorable stage minstrel tradition, Watch his hat.There are other "stereotypes," a dumb Irishman, a stilted German... but none as gracefully presented.If the world were all hats, there would be no problems, no war, except maybe alimony.Its set in Central Park, though not actually shot there. Too bad.Ted's Evaluation -- 2 of 3: Has some interesting elements.

Arthur Hausner This fourth movie in the Hildegarde Withers-Oscar Piper series has Helen Broderick replacing Edna May Oliver in the Withers role. She's the most sophisticated of the three who played the role (the other was ZaSu Pitts) but I still enjoyed the banter she has with James Gleason, who played Piper in the entire series. The plot is a bit hard to follow (I watched it twice to clear up some points) and it is impossible to determine or even guess who the killer is. That didn't bother me, since I had fun with lots of comedy in the film. Willie Best has his usual steroetyped negro role and James Donlan plays the more-or-less inept detective. I particularly enjoyed the red herring of the pipe, which eventually reveals how to tell if a person has false teeth.