A real First National oddity, in that it's mostly a Damon Runyon comedy, part of a mini-Runyon wave then in Hollywood ("Lady for a Day," "Little Miss Marker"), but it's also a historical romance. There's a lengthy, sentimental flashback to 1880s New York, where the Sky Masterson-ish Barthelmess plays a different character altogether, a glum office boy romancing the boss's daughter. (He looks 30 years too old, and he's not the most natural Runyon hero in the modern sequences, either.) The screenwriter has the right ear for Runyonese, a mixture of modern '30s slang and fanciful preciousness, and it's certainly a handsome production, especially in the flashbacks. But the tone isn't consistent, the resolution is too pat (the title is something of a plot giveaway), and the always-interesting Ann Dvorak looks a little bored in a conventional-leading-lady role.
Review of Midnight Alibi
