Think Fast, Mr. Moto (1937)

User Rating:

6.9/10   

Director:

Norman Foster

Writers:

John P. Marquand (novel) and
Norman Foster (writer)

Release Date:

27 July 1937 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Mystery | Thriller | Drama

Plot:

On a freighter going from San Francisco to Shanghai Mr. Moto solves mysteries caused by a gang of smugglers. First of the series.

Plot Keywords:

First Of Series | Beautiful Woman | Based On Novel | Character Name In Title

Cast

Peter Lorre	...	Kentaro Moto
Virginia Field	...	Gloria Danton aka Tanya Barov
Thomas Beck	...	Robert 'Bob' Hitchings Jr.
Sig Ruman	...	Nicolas Marloff (as Sig Rumann)
Murray Kinnell	...	Joseph B. Wilkie
John Rogers	...	Carson, steward-henchman
Lotus Long	...	Lela Liu
George Cooper	...	Muggs Blake
J. Carrol Naish	...	Adram, shopkeeper
Frederick Vogeding	...	Chinatown Curio Dealer

Runtime:

70 min | USA:67 min (FMC Library Print)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Certification:

USA:Approved (PCA #3199) | Finland:K-16

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When Gloria is skeet shooting at the edge of the boat, she cocks the shotgun and the spent shell is seen flying through the air over the side of the boat into what should be the water down below. Instead of hearing a splash, the shell is heard bouncing on what sounds like concrete (stage).

Quotes:

Nicolas Marloff: *Now* think fast, Mr. Moto!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Air Force (1943)

Soundtrack:

The Shy Violet

First in the Series

Think Fast, Mr. Moto (1937)

*** (out of 4)

San Francisco's Mr. Moto (Peter Lorre) finds himself on a ship for Shanghai where he meets a young man (Thomas Beck) whose father owns the ship. Once in China we start to uncover a smuggling ring and a mysterious woman (Virginia Field) who has started a fling with the young man. The first film in Fox's series is a winning film even though the middle of the movie seems to lose focus on the actual story as we get a tad bit too much romance. For the most part the film moves at a very quick pace and delivers some fun performances. I found the middle of the film to get too bogged down with the romance between Beck and Field but other than that this film is a pretty good success. What works best of all is Lorre and his wonderful characterization of Moto. I'm sure some might be offended by Lorre playing an Asian but we have to remember when the film was made and this type of movie did show him in a very positive light. Lorre has some perfect mannerisms and really has the style of Moto down. I loved seeing Lorre during the fighting sequences because he was very believable even with his short size. Field and Beck were also good in their roles as was Sig Ruman and Lotus Long. J. Carrol Naish has a small supporting role as well.