Dick Tracy's Dilemma (1947)

45% of users liked it
(150 ratings)

Ralph Byrd returns to the character he had originated ten years earlier in the serial Dick Tracy. This time, Chester Gould's immortal comic strip hero is called in to handle a fur theft. The owner of Flawless Furs, Humphreys (Charles Marsh), has just signed on with the Honesty Insurance Company… More Ralph Byrd returns to the character he had originated ten years earlier in the serial Dick Tracy. This time, Chester Gould's immortal comic strip hero is called in to handle a fur theft. The owner of Flawless Furs, Humphreys (Charles Marsh), has just signed on with the Honesty Insurance Company whose investigator, Cudd (Al Bridge), made him change the combination to the vault. The insurance policy --as the head of Honesty, Peter Premium (William B. Davidson), explains -- holds the company liable if the stolen furs haven't been recovered within 24 hours of the theft. The trail leads to Longshot Lily (Bernadene Hayes), a would-be fence who is promptly arrested. But when Tracy's snitch, Sightless (Jimmy Conlin), is found brutally murdered, the detective realizes that he has more than a simple fur theft on his hands. With the help of master thespian Vitamin Flintheart (Ian Keith) and ever-present sidekick Pat Patton (Lyle Latell), Tracy follows a series of clues that leads him to a deserted junkyard and a fateful confrontation with fiendish killer "the Claw" (Jack Lambert). Dick Tracy's Dilemma was followed by Dick Tracy Meets Gruesome (1947), after which RKO retired the series. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 1 hr.
Directed By: John Rawlins
Genres: Mystery & Suspense, Action & Adventure

In Theaters: May 20, 1947 Wide
On DVD: Oct 9, 2001
Studio: American Pop Classics

Critic Reviews

Steve Crum, Video-Reviewmaster.com
Grade B comic book-based thriller, one of Tracy series.
Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews
My dilemma is that I recall liking the comic strip as a kid yet am less than thrilled with this flat and at times unbearably grating detective story programmer.
Ed Gonzalez, Apollo Guide
The problem here is that the exposition is stale stuff.

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Featured Audience Ratings

AJ V

Tracy is on the case of stolen furs, not that we care about stolen furs, but at least the criminals are interesting. This is a pretty exciting movie, but it could be better.