The Sarah Keate films can perhaps only with a fair amount of leniency be classified as parts of the same series (the main character has a variety of different names, ages, professional positions, etc., and is played by a variety of actresses), but "The Great Hospital Mystery" is one of the better ones. Here, Keate is named Keats and she is plump, middle-aged, sharp-minded, and sharp-tongued; she's a lot like Hildegarde Withers, and Jane Darwell is perfectly cast in the part (her best lines: "The doctor wants to operate on 707" - "Too bad for 707" - "But he's not sick" - "He will be!"). Sally Blane, looking a lot like her sister Loretta Young, is sweet, Joan Davis is a funny and talented comedienne, the male parts (the good guy doctor, the officious chief of staff, the loudmouthed police inspector) are also well cast, but the best performance of all is given by the prolific William Demarest as a hypochondriac patient. He is simply masterful. The mystery is clever, while the production is clearly "B", but serviceable. **1/2 out of 4.
Review of The Great Hospital Mystery
