THE SECRET OF THE BLACK WIDOW

Karin Dor

THE SECRET OF THE BLACK WIDOW (aka Das Geiheimnis der Schwarzen Witwe/1963). Director: Franz Josef Gottlieb.  

In London a tippling reporter named Welby (O. W. Fischer) angers his bosses by writing lurid articles about a series of murders. The victims are taken out by a poisoned dart that is fired by a blow gun and has a rubber spider at the end. The paper Welby works for is owned by a group of men who are the victims of the unknown killer. Years ago, these men were on an expedition in Mexico which discovered a horde of Aztec treasure -- their leader, Avery, was murdered. It turns out that a secretary named Clarisse (Karin Dor) is Avery's daughter, and suspicion soon falls upon her. Is Clarisse the Black Widow, or is someone else responsible for the deaths?

Klaus Kinski, O. W. Fischer

The Secret of the Black Widow is a West German thriller that for once is not based on a story by Edgar Wallace, although it's very, very much like something Wallace would come up with. In addition to Dor, the film is full of familiar faces from other krimi movies: Klaus Kinski as a mysterious man who appears now and then to get Welby out of danger; Eddi Arent as a bumbling public servant, the usual comedy relief; Werner Peters as Osborne, Welby's direct superior; and others. At times the film is much sillier than it needs to be, the climax is dragged out to a tedious degree, but there is some suspense and the true identity of the Black Widow is a bit of a surprise. Franz Josef Gottlieb also directed the similarly mediocre Curse of the Hidden Vault. 

Verdict: Acceptable West German crime thriller. **1/2.