THE FALCON AND THE COEDS

US, 1943, 67 minutes, Black-and-white.
Tom Conway, Jean Brooks, Rita Corday, Isabel Jewell.
Directed by William Clemens.

The Falcon and the Coeds is a further episode in the series of the Falcon, starring Tom Conway, always urbane, slightly sardonic, very reminiscent of his younger brother, George Sanders, from whom he took over the role after Sanders’ death in The Falcon’s Brother.

This time the Falcon is again on holiday but gets caught up in a murder mystery at an exclusive girls’ school on the coast. He is asked to investigate the alleged suicide of one of the teachers at the school, convinced that it was murder, something foretold by the rather fey Margarita, daughter of a distinguished composer who was insane and who has been persuaded that she too is mad.

There are plenty of suspects, from the headmistress who herself is murdered, the psychologist from Europe who married an American to get into the country, the very self-possessed drama teacher, the mousy assistant, as well as some of the girls in the school.

The Falcon interviews everyone, falls foul of the police as usual, is charming and flirtatious, gradually eliminating the suspects despite some of their seemingly underhand behaviour and the audience will have picked that the main candidate left, the jealous and mousy teacher.

The films works well as an easy murder mystery and has some amusing lines, especially those from the Falcon himself, who prefers thinking ‘with a tall glass in hand!’.

The films was directed by William Clemens who directed small-budget supporting features, four Falcon dramas as well as many of the Nancy Drew series.