Postal Inspector (1936)

Of all the films horror icon Bela Lugosi appeared in, some have flashy or spooky titles. But perhaps the strangest, and therefore most curious is 1936s Postal Inspector. Is...is that right? Postal Inspector, starring Bela Lugosi! Does he murder his enemies with special agents? Does the mail contain messages of death, or poisoned ink?...Oh, ohhhh, crap, he's just a postman, isn't he!...

A plane ride through a foggy night sky almost ends in disaster, but the passengers' spirits are kept up with the help of nightclub singer Connie Larrimore. This catches not only the attention of reporters down below, but also postal worker and childhood friend Charlie. The two reconnect, and hit it off. But one day he tells her about the millions of tattered bills he's taking to be destroyed, and she lets slip to her conniving boss, who'll do anything to get out of his debts...

Postal Inspector, as its title suggests, is a film all about the day-to-day lives of the nation's brave postal service workers. It's a positive advert for the job, while also also showing the unglamorous sides, like bad weather, or the president thanking you over tape instead of in person. We see the usual stuff these inspectors have to deal with, mainly old timey mail scammers. Showing how the more things change, the more they stay the same!

The postmen here are so absurdly dedicated to the job that even in the middle of a flood, they're still determined to mail the post on time. I don't know whether to find it admirable or stupid! What did rub me the wrong way though was them refusing to help police read letters of a murder victim, even if it means finding the killer.

Bill is the handsome postal inspector, with a normal brother, and surprisingly he's the lead and gets girl! Bill's alright, but too untrusting of Charlie, asking loaded questions, suspects ill of poor Connie. Admittedly this is her fault because she couldn't keep her trap shut, but still, she's blameless, and so's your brother! I'd also make cracks about how adorable it is that this postman thinks he's a proper detective, but that may actually be true to life, so I'll hold my tongue.

Charlie's an 'Aww, shucks' type country boy, and has his own own smooth way with the ladies. Connie is a nice girl, who doesn't let fame get to her head. But she can be a bit of a dope, casually telling everything to her boss about secret money shipments.

Nightclub manager Benez is the bad guy here. He's affable enough, but owes money to dangerous people, and is desperate enough to try anything. He's ok, but not villainous enough. Just a manager in need of cash instead of a criminal mastermind, he feels more like a sub-villain.

Postal Inspector feels a bit like an A-list cheapie. It's got a name cast, but clearly working with a low budget. The flood effects are so good though that I wondered if this set was flooded for a bigger budget film, and Postal Inspector was lucky enough to get in on the action before it was cleaned up.

The movie is shot well, and the stock footage integrated ok enough, without feeling in poor taste.

Postal Inspector has a nice homely feel in places, and a silly but sweet ending. Overall the film runs at a brisk 58 minute runtime (or 57 if your print is jittery and missing random words).

The music here is decent, with three songs throughout. Bluebirds on Our Wallpaper, sung on the plane to comfort the passengers, a tune sung in the shower with some amusingly dumb lyrics (people will sing about anything!), and the nightclub number Look How Dry I am, performed with galoshes, to make sure the patrons don't all jump ship.

The cast is ok. 'Latin' lover Ricardo Cortez is top-billed, but despite being the handsome one, it's Michael Loring and Patricia Ellis who are more the leads. Lugosi does a decent job, in what amounts to a pretty normal role. It didn't need anyone of his stature, but he does it anyway. Hattie McDaniels is also present, fun as always!

Postal Inspector is an alright golden oldie. Given the incongruity of its title and its star, it may disappoint, but it's otherwise an alright time if you know what you're getting into. And with a title like Postal Inspector, it's hard to feel you've been tricked into thinking it was a horror movie...