The Jade Mask (1945)

Charlie Chan looks into the apparent murder of a scientist in a spooky mansion.

Director:

Phil Rosen

Writers:

George Callahan (original screenplay), Earl Derr Biggers (character)

Stars:

Sidney Toler, Mantan Moreland, Edwin Luke

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Sidney Toler	...	Charlie Chan
Mantan Moreland	...	Birmingham Brown
Edwin Luke	...	Eddie Chan
Hardie Albright	...	Walter Meeker
Frank Reicher	...	Harper
Janet Warren	...	Jean Kent
Cyril Delevanti	...	Roth
Al Bridge	...	Sheriff Mack (as Alan Bridge)
Ralph Lewis	...	Officer Jim Kimball
Dorothy Granger	...	Stella Graham
Edith Evanson	...	Louise Harper
Joe Whitehead	...	Dr. Samuel R. Peabody
Henry Hall	...	Inspector Godfrey
Jack Ingram	...	Lloyd Archer
Danny Desmond	...	Bellboy

Storyline

Eccentric scientist Harper lives in a spooky mansion with all the trimmings: hidden lab, secret panels, inscrutable butler, and greedy relatives with unusual talents. When Harper seems to be murdered, Charlie Chan (with the uninvited help of No. 4 son) tries to answer such questions as Where's the body? How can a dead man walk? And how can a secret murder be done in full view of detectives and witnesses?

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Plot Keywords:

scientist | butler | espionage | coroner | small town sheriff | 

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Taglines:

A MYSTERY MANSION...Where death lurks in every dark corner and a mad genius runs loose!

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Genres:

Horror | Mystery | Sci-Fi

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

26 January 1945 (USA)

Also Known As:

Charlie Chan in the Jade Mask

Box Office

Budget:

$75,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Monogram Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

66 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The thirty-seventh of forty-seven Charlie Chan movies.

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Goofs

The key to identifying the murderer is an ear remaining from a broken plaster life-make, reputedly as identifiable as a fingerprint, yet when we earlier see an intact life-mask, the face is precise but the ears are generic globs.

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Quotes

Eddie Chan: Now that I'm here, Pop, uh, what type of murder have we got and how soon do you wish me to produce the murderer?
Charlie Chan: Every time you open your mouth you put in more feet than centipede. Remain here and produce nothing but silence.

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Connections

Follows Charlie Chan in Shanghai (1935)

User Reviews

Goofy solution

The Jade Mask has some nice atmosphere to it but the solution is way too goofy to believe. The plot features Chan trying to solve the murder of a scientist. Several more murders occur along the way. Comic relief is provided by a lawman, Chan's number four son Eddie and Birmingham Brown. Brown plays the typical coward role while Eddie is a little more interesting as he's a Chan son who actually goes to his classes in school. He's still a fumbler in the great tradition, however. Another interesting note, the death masks in the movie are made out of plaster, not jade. Not bad but pretty farfetched.

6.0/10