Phido Vance (Who Killed Rover?)

In 1929, Metro Golden Mayer unleashed the Dogville comedy series, nine odd little film shorts that parodied popular films of the day, and they all starred… dogs.

You’ve heard of the talkies? These were the “barkies.”

Dogs dressed up in human clothes, dogs walking on their hind legs, dogs talking, dogs dancing, dogs singing, dogs driving cars, dogs riding on the bus, dogs performing in chorus lines, dogs playing musical instruments, dogs flying airplanes… dogs, dogs, dogs. All dogs all the time.

Oh, the hilarity!

But the one we’re looking at is the third in the series, Who Killed Rover?: The Dogville Murder Case (1930). It’s a spoof of the 1929 feature film The Canary Murder Case, itself based on the novel of the same name by S.S. Van Dine, featuring his popular criminologist Philo Vance.

The detective here is PHIDO VANCE, who speaks with a pompous, vaguely British accent. He’s asked by the lovely Zelda to protect her new husband, John B. Rover, who’s having a big day. He’s just inherited a fortune from his uncle, and oh, yes, it’s also his wedding day.

But the ceremony’s marred by a failed attempt on Rover’s life. Suspecting some sort of further retaliation from the jealous relatives who were cut out of the will, she asks Phido for help.

Phido agrees, and he and the DA round up all the suspects and bring them to the Dogville Police Station, but to no avail. The real culprit is still out there, but Phido sends the two newlyweds off to their honeymoon.

And then Rover’s kidnapped!

Okay, so Phido’s no great shakes as a detective or a bodyguard (see the title), but the film is mildly amusing, particularly when the expressions of the various mutts actually sync with the dubbed dialogue, and there’s an especially cute little bit of doggieness when, on their honeymoon, Rover puts on his PJs and moves the pillow off one of the twin beds, and places it next to the other one.  

Ooh la la!

But after all the canine action and spoofing of all the expected detective tropes of the era (Guns! Knives! A gathering of the suspects! A little racism! A little homophobia! A daring rescue attempt!), this one ends on a surprisingly abrupt and bum note, with Phido having to break the news to Zelda. “Too late… too late… Madam,” the Great Detective says, “it grieves me to inform you that you are now a widow.”

Call it doggie noir.

OKAY, BUT…

While the Dogville films are all sort of amusing (one reviewer suggested pot as beneficial to the enjoyment of the films), some kids may be puzzled by the adult situations presented in the film (adultery, murder, alcoholism, etc.) and true dog lovers of any age may be a little thrown by the question that lingers after the film has been watched.

Namely: how the hell did they do that?

The answer, apparently, is with a lot of harnesses, wires, peanut butter and other dirty tricks. Sure, some of it might have been benign and some it was obviously faked, but some of the tactics used could be considered animal cruelty (and criminal) nowadays. Or even back then. Certainly, none of the cast look particularly happy.

ABOUT THE DIRECTORS

The films were all directed by Zion Myers and Jules White, who would go on to some sort of fame, doing numerous Three Stooges shorts together.

THE DOGVILLE COMEDIES

• College Hounds (1929; a parody of the college sports movie Brown of Harvard)
• Hot Dog (1929; a parody of the legal drama Madame X (1929)
• Who Killed Rover?: The Dogville Murder Case (1930): a parody of The Canary Murder Case (1929)
• The Dogway Melody (1930): a parody of the musical The Broadway Melody (1929)
• The Big Dog House (1930): a parody of the prison film The Big House (1930)
• So Quiet on the Canine Front (1931): a parody of All Quiet on the Western Front (1930)
• Love-Tails of Morocco: a parody of the Foreign Legion film Morocco (1930)
• The Two Barks Brothers: a parody of Gentleman’s Fate (1931)
• Trader Hound: a parody of the adventure film Trader Horn (1931)

FILMS