For a Dickens novel without a conclusion, this has had quite the afterlife, with several films, a Tony winning Broadway musical and a hit revival. But it's been tough for this film, which among the five Dickens novels adapted for screen in the 30's is probably least remembered. The film stars Claude Rains as the uncle of the title character, the possibly insane choir master who is upset when nephew David Manners wins the love of the young woman he's obsessed with (Heather Angel).
When Drood is found murdered, the mystery of who kills him reveals a ton of questions not revealed by Dickens who died before exposing it for the conclusion of his novel. Douglass Montgomery as his main rival is the top suspect, and there's a lot of finger pointing going on with supporting players E. E. Clive, Francis L. Sullivan and Walter Kingsford. Ethel Griffies, Zeffie Tilbury and beautiful Valarie Hobson are also among the ensemble. I found this quite different than the musical which had a music hall performance setting. Still an interesting experiment if sadly flawed.
When Drood is found murdered, the mystery of who kills him reveals a ton of questions not revealed by Dickens who died before exposing it for the conclusion of his novel. Douglass Montgomery as his main rival is the top suspect, and there's a lot of finger pointing going on with supporting players E. E. Clive, Francis L. Sullivan and Walter Kingsford. Ethel Griffies, Zeffie Tilbury and beautiful Valarie Hobson are also among the ensemble. I found this quite different than the musical which had a music hall performance setting. Still an interesting experiment if sadly flawed.