Independent Films, Film Profiles

Satan Met a Lady
by William Dieterle

Satan Met a Lady is a 1936 Warner Bros. comedy/detective film loosely based on Dashiell Hammett's The Maltese Falcon, and starring Bette Davis – who reportedly considered it one of the worst films of her career – and Warren William. Adapted for the screen by Brown Holmes, who was the co-writer of the 1931 version of The Maltese Falcon, the film was directed by William Dieterle.In this light-comedy version of the story, the character names have all been changed, although their function and relationships for the most part are the same, and the macguffin is an 8th century ram's horn full of jewels rather than a statuette of a falcon.Private detective Ted Shane (Warren William) is thrown out of yet another city and returns to work with his former partner Ames (Porter Hall). Ames is not particularly happy to see him, because his wife, Astrid (Winifred Shaw), is in love with Shane.Valerie Purvis (Bette Davis) hires the detectives to find a man called Farrow. Ames and Farrow both end up dead, with Shane the chief suspect for both murders. After demanding the truth from Valerie, Shane finds that his office and apartment have been ransacked, and his secretary, Miss Murgatroyd (Marie Wilson) locked in the closet by Anthony Travers (Arthur Treacher). Travers is searching for "Roland's trumpet", an 8th century ram's horn rumored to be crammed with jewels, which Shane suspects is what Valerie is after as well. Madame Barabbas (Alison Skipworth), a notorious criminal, is also searching for the horn and sends a gunman to bring Shane to her. Working all sides of the street, Shane makes deals with each of them to find the horn, and eventually winds up in possession of the package supposedly containing it—but it turns out to be full of sand instead of jewels. The police round up all the suspects, but Shane and Valerie escape. He baits Valerie into confessing to Ames's murder and turns her over to the police, then runs off with Miss Murgatroyd.