When a film has no prior reviews on IMDb I know it must be relatively obscure. This one was filmed at the very cheap-looking Kay's Studio in Maida Vale and seems to be a vehicle to showcase the talents of Josef Ranald, a leading palm reader of his day. Ranald also wrote the production, which is certainly not a documentary despite the plot summary on this site.
HANDS OF DESTINY features the likable Terence Alexander in a main role as he acts as the audience's portal into the world of palm reading. He plays Ranald's secretary. The film is an unwieldy mix of short stories and various facts and figures relating to palmistry. What's most impressive is that Ranald has a collection of palm prints of some of the most famous figures of the day, including loads of US presidents and leading Nazi officials.
The stories tend to feature Arnald as himself, playing against genuine actors like Bill Nagy, John Breslin, and Hilda Fenemore. There's a feel-good story which amusingly sees London trying to stand in for Shanghai and shows how a suicidal woman can be brought back from the brink via fortune telling. The other story is more long-winded and about the hunt for a long-lost son. Although this is a very basic and dated propaganda piece, it does teach the viewer a few interesting facts about palm reading and I suspect most people will do as I did and watch this with one palm raised in front of them.