Phantom Raiders

. . . as the Art of the Deal for Al's corrupt corporate cannibals involves bogus cargo, lackadaisical shipping inspectors, four freighters blown to smithereens with Trojan Horse radio bombs and massive insurance fraud. The 160 sailors ripped apart or drowned are thought of as mere "collateral damage; the cost of doing business." For the House of the Groaning Fat Cat One Per Centers, PHANTOM RAIDERS epitomizes the American Way. The back-stabbing, cut-throat merciless corporate tactics pictured here are sure to inspire the Am-Way crowd of core supporters to doff their mask of civility and become super spreaders plaguing our U.S. Homeland with greed, money lust and a callous disregard for Human Life.

There is wartime espionage in Panama and ships have been lost. An insurance company is desperate to hire private detective Nick Carter (Walter Pidgeon) but he's on vacation. Beeswax Bartholemew (Donald Meek) tracks him down for the job. It's the second of a trilogy. It continues the espionage aspect as the real world war rages on. I have to admit that I didn't realize that the bee man is a franchise regular. While he provides some essential humor, he needs to quit the bee thing. It's a ridiculous gimmick that makes no sense. He's just carrying bees around like Batman carrying his Batarangs. He could be carrying smoke bombs, honey treats, and stinger-like daggers. The big difference between this and the first movie is a lack of big action scenes. I like the chemistry between Nick and the Bee Man but it's not enough in this one.

If you're a fan of the old private dick movies from the 30s & 40s then I'll bet you a wooden nickel that you're gonna like this one. It has plenty of cliche's, but remember, when this film was new a lot of the plot devices were not quite so hackneyed. The use of lighting and shadow is nicely done noir, all in glorious black & white of course. Walter Pidgeon is fine as Nick Carter. This is apparently his second time playing the streetsmart, wry humored, skirt chasing gumshoe. The rest of the cast is just fine too. It's not Bogart, Astor, Greenstreet, & Lorre; but it was released a year before that film, against which all in this genre are inevitably compared to. I really liked Nat Pendleton as tough guy "Gunboat". To sum it up, I love the corny humor and tidy endings of the films from this era. That old timey slang really cracks me up too. Say you birds, give dis picture show an even break and don't take it too seriously... I wouldn't kid ya, I'm on da level here.

Phantom Raiders portrays a crime that is all to possible today, blowing up ships set off by electrical devices. However this was 1940, the era of the wisecracking detective and his sidekick neatly wrapping up the mystery in a little over an hour. What sets this film apart from other movies of the same type is its crackling good dialog, an insidious villain,(Joseph Shildkraut),the suave Nick Carter,(a clean shaven Walter Pigeon), his assistant, Mr Bartholomew (beautifully played by Donald Meek), the innocent ingénue(the captivating Florence Rice). Speaking of Florence Rice, she literally lights up the screen when she is on. At the same time vulnerable, adoring. Listen to the way she says "I love him", talking about her boyfriend, it will melt your heart. Highly recommend!