The passage of seven decades has not dimmed the impact of the powerhouse melodrama Blood Money. Written and directed by
Rowland Brown, an aficionado of underworld fact and fiction, the film star
Frances Dee as Elaine Talbert, a decadent young heiress who will do anything for a quick thrill. Her ongoing search for a man who will "take charge" of her, Talbert goes on a shoplifting spree and gets mixed up with crooked bail-bondsman Bill Bailey, who is nothing more than a legal extortionist. She is also sucked into the netherworld of penny-ante crook Drury Darling (
Chick Chandler) and his wife, black-widow nightclub queen Ruby Darling (
Judith Anderson, in her film debut) The climax, involving a booby-trapped billiard ball, is a tenser variation of a famous sequence from Keaton's Sherlock Jr.. And the film's now-legendary final scene, which proves beyond a doubt that Talbert has learned nothing from her perilous experiences, is really one for the books! Hard to find nowadays, Blood Money has justifiably assumed "cult film" status. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide