Charlie Chan in Reno (1939)

User Rating:

7.7/10   

Director:

Norman Foster

Writers:

Earl Derr Biggers (characters)
Frances Hyland (writer)

Release Date:

16 June 1939 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

Plot:

Mary Whitman, an old friend of Charlie's in Reno for a divorce, finds herself accused of murdering the woman her husband planned to marry after the decree became final.

Plot Keywords:

Reno | Divorce | Hotel | Easter Egg | Jealousy

Cast

Sidney Toler	...	Charlie Chan
Ricardo Cortez	...	Dr. Ainsley
Phyllis Brooks	...	Vivian Wells
Slim Summerville	...	Sheriff Tombstone Fletcher
Kane Richmond	...	Curtis Whitman
Victor Sen Yung	...	Jimmy Chan (as Sen Yung)
Pauline Moore	...	Mary Whitman
Eddie Collins	...	Cab Driver
Kay Linaker	...	Mrs. Wayne Russell
Louise Henry	...	Jeanne Bentley
Robert Lowery	...	Wally Burke
Charles D. Brown	...	Police Chief King
Iris Wong	...	Choy Wong
Morgan Conway	...	George Bentley
Hamilton MacFadden	...	Night Clerk

Runtime:

70 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA High Fidelity Recording)

Certification:

Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | USA:Approved

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

Besides Sidney Toler as Charlie Chan, this film's cast contained three other actors who also played famous crimefighters: Ricardo Cortez (Sam Spade in the 1931 "Maltese Falcon"), Morgan Conway (Dick Tracy in two RKO films in the mid-1940's) and Robert Lowery (Batman in the Columbia serial "The Adventures of Batman and Robin" in 1948).

Quotes:

Charlie Chan: When searching for needle in haystack, haystack only sensible location.

Movie Connections:

Followed by Dead Men Tell (1941)

Slow-moving but honest who-done-it

Unlike most of the Warner Oland Chan films, those featuring Sidney Toler as Lieutenant Charlie Chan, Honolulu Police Department, often include sufficient clues that the viewer can play detective along with the hero. Charlie Chan in Reno is one of those films. Released prior to a first-class film with a similar main storyline (`The Women' in 1939) this Chan film also has a group of females waiting their time in Reno before a divorce decree can be granted. Chan has an eye for these ladies: `Charming company turn lowly sandwich into rich banquet.' Norman Foster takes over from a series of Mr. Moto films to direct the first of three good Chan films.

Good supporting comedic cast with Victor Sen Yung as No. 2 son Jimmy - a USC undergraduate, former Keystone Kop Slim Summerville as Sheriff `Tombstone' Fletcher, and Eddie Collins as the ever-talkative cab driver (until it is suggested that he might appear in court). Ricardo Cortez is smooth as the suspicious doctor with a motive for murder. Some racial slurring as a hood from the lineup pulls up on the corners of his eyes and tells the detective that he also is one of Chan's sons.

Most of the story takes place at the Hotel Sierra or Police Headquarters. Jealousy, possible robbery, and other motives and a number of obvious suspects complicate the solution. `When searching for needle in haystack, haystack only sensible location.' A keen eye for details will lead the viewer to see what Chan sees and to anticipate his every move. Good luck, the Sheriff could not figure it out and storms out of headquarters heading for Tonopah in disgust at the end.

Could have moved faster. Recommended.