The tone of this movie is interesting -- the stakes are both dramatic and high, but it's balanced with a lot of fun, tongue and cheek dialogue.

Mostly, the movie is committed to the value of a good time.

This is a gorgeous movie made by a gorgeous spirit.

One of the film's great tricks is that, for a time, you think it will go down a rabbit hole of unrealistic glorification.

Time Out for Murder is the first of three mysteries about a reporter, his photographer and the repo girl who is assigned to get his trombone back (don't ask). They get sucked into the case of a woman supposedly killed by a bank messenger who is in love with a woman who tells the time on the phone (hey it's from 1938).I don't think the plot makes a great deal of sense. You can kind of figure who is behind part of it instantly because of what he is supposed to have said about the accused alibi. But the film makes things even more complicated by adding a second villain to the mix. It allows for some interesting bits towards the end but mostly it really seems like it was thrown is so things weren't so obvious.Over all the film is more a distraction rather than anything of substance. I came I saw I moved on to the next thing.I can't believe that there are two more films in the series.