AllMovie

Based on a novel by Meredith Nicholson, The House of 1000 Candles is one of the slickest films ever to emerge from the Nat Levine unit at Republic. Phillips Holmes stars as diplomatic courier Tony Carleton, who's been entrusted with a secret message vital to the cause of International peace. En route to Geneva by train, Tony is drugged by sexy cabaret dancer Raquel (Rosita Moreno), who promptly steals the message -- only to be murdered by sinister master spy Sebastian (Irving Pichel), owner of a posh gambling casino known as The House of a Thousand Candles. Realizing that Tony is the only person who can decipher the message, Sebastian kidnaps Tony's sweetheart Carol (Mae Clarke), threatening to kill her if our hero doesn't cooperate. Rescued by his faithful valet (Fred Walton), Tony and Carol make their escape then expose the secret behind Sebastian's insidiously complex espionage network. Many reviewers in 1936 compared House of 1000 Candles to the best that Alfred Hitchcock had to offer -- quite a coup for director Arthur Lubin, a man best known for his Abbott & Costello and "Francis the Talking Mule" pictures!