User Reviews

Dr. T.S. Clitterhouse (Edward G. Robinson) is a cultivated and distinguished Park Avenue doctor, with a respectable list of clients. He's also obsessed with the workings of the criminal mind, and begins a research project that will help advance the cause of science and the medical profession in understanding the scientific basis for criminal action. As the film opens, the good doctor has just committed his fourth robbery, all jewel heists, and is now about to ingratiate himself with a mob, hoping to gain further insight.

I found "The Amazing Dr. Clitterhouse" to be a blast, owing largely to Robinson's understated, almost casual performance as a master criminal. His random choice of a gang to work with leads him to Jo Keller (Claire Trevor), and a short list of Warner stock players, including Allen Jenkins, Slapsie Maxie Rosenbloom, and Ward Bond as members of the mob. He's generally well received by all, especially after making Lieutenant Johnson (Robert Homans) sweat it out in a routine interrogation. The one thorn in Clitterhouse's side is Rocks Valentine (Humphrey Bogart), who doesn't take kindly to the doctor's high society manner and scientific method. The fact that Jo might be falling for the doc is also a factor, though there is no chemistry to speak of between Jo and Rocks, their relationship primarily focused on the next big heist.

What might have begun as scientific research begins to look a lot like enjoyment for the doctor, so after robbing a fur vault Clitterhouse decides it's time to take a break. He doesn't find it so easy though, as Bogie's character traces his identity back to it's Park Avenue origins and attempts to blackmail him. However the doc's knowledge of drugs give him the upper hand, and slipping Rocks a paradol chloride cocktail is enough to take him out of the picture.

The cat and mouse game that follows between Police Inspector Lane (Donald Crisp) and Clitterhouse is well conceived; as the doc is about to be arrested, the chance arrival of his lawyer offers an intriguing exchange that offers him a legal way out. With surprising calm, Clitterhouse learns that he's a megalomaniac, and as mad as a hatter if he thought he could get away with murder. The courtroom scene that follows turns into a three ring circus as the jury finds that Clitterhouse must be insane. One thing that surprised me though, is there such a thing as a "State Lunacy Commission"?

There are enough elements of each for this movie to be considered both a comedy and a crime film, with about equal parts of both taking center stage. Robinson's role is uncharacteristic of his typical gangster performances, here he's a cool and sophisticated operator; he doesn't really believe he's doing anything wrong in his quest to advance medical science. Presiding over the final court room scene having given way to utter chaos, Clitterhouse calmly surveys the madness and can only comment - "Amazing, really amazing."

As a 20-year-old student who recently picked up film history, film theory and filmmaking I started watching a lot of old movies lately. However, I always struggled with them, even those I enjoyed I found a bit boring, but I guess it just has to do with the generation difference. Still, I watch them and rate them with their age taken into consideration.

That wasn't the case when I watched this movie. From the moment the doctor let in the nurse on his plan I was grabbed. Unnecessary to say, I loved the plot. It's clever and fascinating. And from this point the movie just got better and better, I never knew what to expect.

Edward G. Robinson was fantastic in his role, and the film being based on a play ensured top-notch dialogs. Humphrey Bogart did alright as well, I certainly liked him better in this movie than in The Petrified Forest (1936) where his character felt rather one-dimensional.

To top it all, the ending was just genius, the jury's decision bit predictable, but still hilarious. This movie is funny, exciting, intelligent, and it's timeless. I wasn't feeling like I was watching an old movie, I was feeling like I was watching top cinema. I rarely give a 9 rating to a film, but this one deserves it. Brilliant!

Directed by Anatole Litvak, with a screenplay co-written by John Huston, this above average comedic crime drama featuring Edward G. Robinson, also stars Claire Trevor and Humphrey Bogart, among several other Warner Bros. stock players.

The titled Doctor (Robinson) is a respected Park Avenue physician, a frequent guest at high society parties, who personally engages in thievery as research for a book that he hopes will provide insight into the physiology of the criminal, and "his" mind. During this quest for knowledge, Dr. Clitterhouse associates with the city's highest stakes fence Jo Keller (Trevor) and "her" gang, led by "Rocks" Valentine (Bogart), while trying to avoid capture by his acquaintance, Police Inspector Lewis Lane (Donald Crisp). The performances by its three leads (Robinson, Trevor, & Bogart) are particularly good.

Clitterhouse has just beaten a member of Rocks's gang to a safe full of jewels at a Park Avenue party he's attended. After checking on a patient's condition by phone, he even calls the police and attends to the "innocent" criminal who was captured and shot in the confusion. Naturally, he avoided Police Inspector Lane's suspicion, under whose nose he escapes with his bounty on his way to surgery (on Thurston Hall's character, that appears again later). His nurse (Gale Page) discovers the jewels and learns from the Doctor that he is doing research - recording his own physical reactions before, during, and after committing these crimes (four, so far) - in hopes of writing an insightful book about it for the benefit of science and/or law enforcement. Because she's obviously fond of her employer of many years, whom she feels is just overworked, she agrees not to tell anyone.

In order to learn more, Clitterhouse and nurse even visit his acquaintance, Inspector Lane, to find out what he should do next. The Inspector freely shares that a jewel thief will try to pawn his take and even gives Clitterhouse the name of the one most likely able to handle the caliber of stuff that's been stolen. So, Clitterhouse goes to the Sequin Hotel, which is owned by the pawn named Keller, whom he is surprised to find out is a woman named Jo.

One of the film's best scenes involves Clitterhouse's "introduction" to the gang of thieves with which Jo is associated. His visit just happens to coincide with the appearance of Rocks and a raid on her hotel. Clitterhouse quickly hides the jewels in a bowl of pretzels and then proceeds to "dress down" police Lieutenant Ethelbert Johnson (Robert Homans); his logical approach to the situation helps him avoid giving his name and endears him to Jo and the gang which includes her bodyguard Butch (Maxie Rosenbloom), Okay (Allen Jenkins), and Tug (Ward Bond) among others.

Rocks, who'd been hiding in the closet, was not so impressed and/or immediately recognizes the threat to his leadership. Clitterhouse and Jo discuss a partnership, his brain with her people, which then enables him to study a larger population of criminals' reactions before, during and after their crimes. He pretends to go abroad while he sets up shop at a studio where the gang pretends to be musicians when they're not carrying out the crimes that the Doctor has planned. Mild humor and symptoms, such as Okay losing his voice when he gets nervous, are incorporated while Rocks bides his time and waits for the proper moment to regain the power again.

That opportunity comes when Clitterhouse plans a large fur heist. Jo, who's fallen in love with the Doctor, suspects that Rocks may be up to something and sends her heavy Butch, for the first time, on the job. Sure enough, Rocks seizes the chance by locking Clitterhouse in the safe, which he'd opened by hand, on his way out. However, because Rocks also turned up the safe's cooling system, the Doctor's respiratory system was lowered long enough for Butch to torch the safe open again, and before he'd run out of oxygen.

An anxious Jo and company wait at the studio for Clitterhouse's return, but just as Rocks is being questioned, Butch and the Doctor arrive. Without explicitly exposing Rocks, Clitterhouse decides that his work is done, that Rocks can have his gang back, and gives the boys their final payoffs before leaving. A cheap plot device involving the phone is used that enables Rocks to track the Doctor, heretofore known to the gang only as "the Professor", back to his Park Avenue office.

Jo soon follows but is too late to warn Clitterhouse before Rocks has him at the point of his gun. Rocks confiscates the Doctor's research which he protests is full of incriminating information. He then tells Clitterhouse that he likes the Doctor's setup and thinks, with Clitterhouse's social contacts, that it will be the perfect base of operations for future thefts. Trapped, Clitterhouse's warped mind rationalizes the need for yet another chapter for his book, concerning the ultimate act - murder, which he proceeds to commit by putting a specialized poison in Rocks's drink.

Even though, out of love, Jo tries to confess to Inspector Lane about Rocks's murder, another couple of cheap plot devices are employed which enable Lane to arrest Clitterhouse, who had just confessed his crime to his friend and attorney Grant (Hall). Grant pleads his case as insanity to the Judge (Henry O'Neill), the jury and its exasperated foreman (Irving Bacon), against the prosecutor (John Litel).

A little hackneyed perhaps, but a perfectly logical (and amazing!) verdict is eventually rendered, which somehow got by the censors at the time (who insisted that no criminal should go free and, after all, Clitterhouse was a murderer even if it was a criminal like Rocks!) - not guilty, though the Judge does recommend that the state doctor's examine him.

The IMDb summary for this film lists it as a black comedy. I'm don't see it as a comedy, although there are some humorous moments. Rather, I see it as a film that is difficult to classify because it is rather unique. And what a pleasure it is when one finds a film that is unique.

For those who like Edward G. Robinson, and I always have, this is a special treat, because here he doesn't play a gangster...exactly. He plays a doctor (Clitterhouse) who wants to research why some people pursue crime as a living...so he becomes a jewel thief himself. It's cool to see Robinson play someone with some refinement, since he was, in actuality, a rather refined man with an interest is art collecting, for example. But, as the plot develops, he must commit murder. The climax of the film is a courtroom scene where he acquitted based on insanity...but it's a wonderful twist on how that's decided.

Since I first viewed this film I've revised my opinion about Humprhery Bogart in this film. Originally, I didn't feel that he fared very well in this film. He plays a rather seedy character involved in an underworld fencing operation. But in watching the film a second time, I think he actually does rather nicely, showing a little heart, despite having little class. Claire Trevor is the love interest, surprisingly for Clitterhouse. There are several character actors you'll recognize here -- Ward Bond, Allen Jenkins, Henry O'Neill, Donald Crisp, and Slapsie Maxie Rosenbloom.

Definitely well worth a watch!

Every so often, I see a movie that I can pretty confidently say is a combination of two films I've seen previously due to their similar plots or reuse of the same actors. In this case, I feel this movie is a cross between Dr. Ehrlich's Magic Bullet and Brother Orchid, although a bunch of films can take the place of the latter. This is because The Amazing Dr. Clitterhouse not only features Edward G Robinson and Humphrey Bogart together once again, but they're rivals. This just so happens to be the case in almost every single movie these two appear in side by side, and I'm guessing it's because the screen isn't big enough for two paragons of old cinema. As for me drawing comparisons to Dr. Ehrlich, the similarities couldn't be more obvious once you start watching. Dr. Clitterhouse is about the title character (Robinson) studying the effects crime has on the bodies and minds of people that commit it. Clitterhouse not only researches criminals, but goes one step farther and decides to become one himself in order to more readily access things like blood pressure readings, temperature and so on. Under the guise of a respectable and wealthy physician, he robs several jewels from various places. From a patient of his, Inspector Lane (Donald Crisp), Clitterhouse (whose real name is unknown to most people) learns about Jo Keller, someone who buys and sells stolen items. Upon trying to meet with Jo, Clitterhouse finds out it's a woman (Claire Trevor). Jo's affiliation is with a gang of racketeers led by Rocks Valentine (Humphrey Bogart), and Clitterhouse joins up with him. Shortly after joining, Clitterhouse's intelligence, calm and collected way of speaking in front of cops (and making them look stupid in the process) and humor start to alienate Rocks from him. Jo starts to like Clitterhouse, and it's getting him frustrated. When Clitterhouse and the gang rob a place storing women's coats, Rocks seals Clitterhouse inside a vault and floods it with minus 20 degree air. One of Jo's thugs breaks out Clitterhouse with a blowtorch and he shows up at Rocks' hideout. Rocks, no doubt angry his rival somehow managed to escape execution, is happy to hear Clitterhouse is deciding to leave, since he apparently has done enough research. Rocks, via a device on the underside of his telephone, manages to decipher Clitterhouse's real number and learns his actual name. He shows up to his Park Ave office and threatens him into giving him and his gang total control of it. Rocks looks through Clitterhouse's notes and discovers he has enough things written in it to lock up Rocks and the others for life, but Clitterhouse has not studied what murder does to a criminal's body yet. Jo shows up, and as Rocks tells her to rejoice (now that Clitterhouse is basically their slave) Clitterhouse feigns playing along and proposes a toast of whiskey. Rocks gulps it down, not realizing Clitterhouse has poisoned it. He examines what happens to Rocks' body and mental state as he slowly dies. Jo, knowing they'll get the doctor for this, helps him hide Rocks' body in a river, but the cops find it anyway and discover the chemical in his stomach. At Clitterhouse's trial, he takes offense when someone accuses his book of research as being the work of a madman, and says the insane can only write things that are incomprehensible. Clitterhouse maintains that he is sound of mind and is fully in control of himself, so the jury ultimately arrives at the conclusion that he is nuts. They think Clitterhouse is actually insane since he is trying very hard to prove to everyone that he is not insane, and therefore ready for the chair. Only a lunatic would do that. While I thought some characters and moments of this movie were pretty annoying due to their attempt to tie in comedy with a crime story, it's my belief that The Amazing Dr. Clitterhouse is an overall alright movie. Like I said before, it reminds me a lot of Dr. Ehrlich (in which Robinson also plays a doctor) but that one is much more serious in tone and in my opinion better. He's still good here, but it couldn't be more predictable seeing him being set in Bogart's sights. I can't think of one other movie that has Robinson facing off against him and living to talk about it. In Key Largo, Bogart kills him, in Kid Galahad, they kill each other, and in Bullets or Ballots, the same happens. At least Robinson lives to see the end of this movie, but Bogart always seems to obliterate him in some way or another. One thing I can say though is Robinson's poison and Bogart definitely have chemistry. Watch this movie if you can't get enough of these two cinematic titans trying to get rid of each other.

The renowned Dr. Clitterhouse (Edward G. Robinson), interested in the criminal personality, joins a gang of thieves anonymously. He finds himself strangely thrilled in their presence. He carries out research, pupilary dilation and whatnot, and eventually plans their big heist. (He gives his part of the proceeds to charity.) Then, his work accomplished, he bids the gang adieu.

Alas, one of the more obnoxious of the gangsters, Rocks (Humphrey Bogart), unravels Robinson's professional identity, tracks him down in his office, and tries to blackmail him into coming up with more master plans. Robinson coolly poisons Bogart and dumps his body in the river, believing that the police will attribute the death to accidental drowning.

Some doctor! He neglects to put Bogart's body in the bathtub and fill his lungs with water, so the cops find a stomach full of paraldehyde chloride and a homicide. It doesn't take them long to find that Dr. Clitterhouse is responsible.

The trial is a mockery (co-written by John Huston). Robinson's lawyer put on a psychiatrist who befogs the air with psychiatric gibberish. Catch-22 applies, the jury concludes. Robinson, the defendant, has only one chance of getting off without being fried -- he must be insane. However, Robinson takes the stand and declares repeatedly and emphatically that he's perfectly sane. Therefore, if he's so convinced he's sane, he must be insane. He gets off with a trip to a psychiatric hospital. "Remarkable," comments Robinson.

Humphrey Bogart was making a slew of movies around this time, usually in the same roles -- secondary and villainous. He always made fun of his performance in this film, and of the film itself, lending its title a vulgar change. But, although Bogart's part is stereotyped, the film isn't that bad. The protagonist, Robinson, does a fine job of projecting professional cool. He's believable as a supercilious doctor. He did a much different job of showing a professional man's anxiety in Fritz Lang's superior "The Woman in the Window".

Litvak hurries the film along. The motto of the later gangster films was abbreviated to ODTAA -- one damned thing after another. Characters whiz in and out of door. When they speak on the phone, it sounds like this: "Hello, gimme Leftie -- Leftie? Take the envelope and get rid of it -- What? -- No, don't do that -- Yeah, just what I told you -- No, don't come here -- Right." (Hangs up.) The pauses between these snapped-out comments don't last long enough for anyone on the other end of the call to take a deep breath, let alone make a comment or ask a question. Not a second is wasted. Nobody even says good-bye.

I kind of like it.