Buffronioc One of the wrost movies I have ever seen

PodBill Just what I expected

Mjeteconer Just perfect...

MoPoshy Absolutely brilliant

Michael_Elliott Smart Blonde (1937) ** (out of 4) The first of nine films in the series has reporter Torchy Blane (Glenda Farrell) and boyfriend Steve McBride (Barton MacLane) investigating the murder of a millionaire who was set to buy some property at a discounted price. The two set out to find who killed the man but also why the seller took his bid, which was much lower than what others had offered. This here is pretty much average for the various murder/mystery series that were out during this era. Of course, the big difference here is that the lead character is a female even though in the original stories the character was a male. For the most part I found this film to be entertaining enough, although there's no doubt that the studio didn't exactly attach one of their best writers to the film. I say that because the story here is without question the weakest bit because there's nothing really here that we haven't seen in much better movies and nothing here really jumps off the screen. The murder investigation has a few interesting bits but not enough to really make the film better. There's no question that Farrell deserves a lot of credit for what entertainment there is because of her fast-talking one-liners that manage to be fun. Her chemistry with MacLane also adds some nice charm. Film buffs will be able to spot Jane Wyman in a quick bit. SMART BLONDE isn't exactly smart but it's entertaining enough for fans of the genre.

bkoganbing Smart Blonde is the first film of the Torchy Blane series with Glenda Farrell as former showgirl turned reporter with a real keen sense of a scoop. She works the police beat where she constantly runs up against her boyfriend, homicide cop Barton MacLane. Depending on how you view things, Torchy's a help or a hindrance. But in this case she was literally on top of the story. Seconds after being interviewed by her, nightclub impresario Joseph Crehan is shot down in Union Station.Crehan was going to buy a nightclub owned by Addison Richards who was getting out of the business and getting ready to marry Charlotte Wynters and go into the real estate business with her and her brother Robert Paige, leaving his club singer Wini Shaw all in distress. Another one in distress is Max Wagner, Richards's gunsill because there's not much call for his line of work in real estate.One murder later of course Torchy's put it all together for MacLane and gets her paper the scoop. But the plot does take an interesting twist or two, it's not who you think it is.Jane Wyman has a small supporting role as a hatcheck girl with a tendency to gossip which aids Farrell in her story. This was of course at the beginning of Wyman's career which included a film as Torchy Blane herself when Farrell quit the series.Smart Blonde proves how popular the Torchy Blane series was at Warner Brothers and why it was so well received in the late Thirties.

kokopop-3 The movie doesn't work that well as a mystery, so I think the viewer should just think of it as a romantic comedy since MacLane and Farrell succeed so brilliantly at elevating the material and they have such good on screen chemistry.Also, considering that while Torchy has real affection for MacBride, she doesn't hesitate to let him know when she thinks he's being ridiculous (Dixie to Torchy "Ain't he masterful?" Torchy "Yeah, all he needs is a leopard skin!")and he's not the center of her life.She was years ahead of her time so I think she was a good role model.Maybe Torchy is what Nancy Drew would be if she ever written as an adult.

holly Glenda Farrell originates the role of Torchy Blain, a fast-talking wise-cracking reporter who will do anything for a scoop, including using her amiable lieutenant boyfriend to sneak into crime scenes, steal clues from the police, and even bully suspects into making false statements to find the real culprit. Farrell has a filmography a mile long, usually playing a second-fiddle gold diggers and hard-luck girls, so it's nice to see this forgotten actress take the lead in a role that is smart and funny. Lasting only an hour, SMART BLONDE is one of those "B" movies that was shown before the main feature, so don't expect deep characters or an intricate mystery, but Farrell tears through the script at lightning speed, trading quips and unraveling a murder cover-up. Barton MacLane as her lieutenant boyfriend McBride is a sturdy and likable foil -- for once the cops aren't entirely stupid. Despite some shamefully racist moments, the Torchy Blane series of films are overall very satisfying and fun. They should be remembered in the same pre-war vein as HIS GIRL Friday, where a woman could be every bit as smart and career-driven as a man. Oddly enough, Farrell played an identical character in the horror classic MYSTERY OF THE WAX MUSEUM (1933) but lost top billing to Fay Wray.