In Shanghai, dragon-lady 'Mother' Gin Sling operates a gambling house for wealthy patrons but she clashes with influential land developer Sir Guy Charteris who wants to put her out-of-business.
Everyone else may be watching "You" on Netflix, but star Shay Mitchell can't turn away from a different Netflix show.
Related News
-
The Furniture Index
31 July 2017 | FilmExperience -
The Saga of Anatahan
11 April 2017 | Trailers from Hell -
The Furniture: Appropriating Chinese Design in "The Shanghai Gesture"
16 January 2017 | FilmExperience
User Lists
Related lists from IMDb users
Share this Rating
Title: The Shanghai Gesture (1941)
Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? Use the HTML below.
Nominated for
2
Oscars.
See more awards »
Learn more
More Like This
Macao
(1952)
Certificate: Passed
Adventure
|
Crime
|
Drama
Directors:
Josef von Sternberg,
Nicholas Ray
Stars:
Robert Mitchum,
Jane Russell,
William Bendix
Cry of the City
(1948)
Certificate: Passed
Crime
|
Drama
|
Film-Noir
Director:
Robert Siodmak
Stars:
Victor Mature,
Richard Conte,
Fred Clark
The Las Vegas Story
(1952)
Crime
|
Drama
|
Film-Noir
Director:
Robert Stevenson
Stars:
Jane Russell,
Victor Mature,
Vincent Price
China Girl
(1942)
Drama
Director:
Henry Hathaway
Stars:
Gene Tierney,
George Montgomery,
Lynn Bari
Christmas Holiday
(1944)
Crime
|
Drama
|
Film-Noir
Director:
Robert Siodmak
Stars:
Deanna Durbin,
Gene Kelly,
Richard Whorf
South Sea Woman
(1953)
Certificate: Passed
Action
|
Adventure
|
Comedy
Director:
Arthur Lubin
Stars:
Burt Lancaster,
Virginia Mayo,
Chuck Connors
Drama
|
Film-Noir
Director:
Robert Siodmak
Stars:
George Sanders,
Ella Raines,
Geraldine Fitzgerald
Drama
|
Film-Noir
|
Romance
Director:
Lewis Milestone
Stars:
Barbara Stanwyck,
Van Heflin,
Lizabeth Scott
Sundown
(1941)
Drama
|
War
Director:
Henry Hathaway
Stars:
Gene Tierney,
Bruce Cabot,
George Sanders
The Quiet American
(1958)
Drama
|
Romance
|
Thriller
Director:
Joseph L. Mankiewicz
Stars:
Audie Murphy,
Michael Redgrave,
Claude Dauphin
The King Steps Out
(1936)
Comedy
|
Musical
|
Romance
Director:
Josef von Sternberg
Stars:
Franchot Tone,
Grace Moore,
Walter Connolly
Belle Starr
(1941)
Western
Director:
Irving Cummings
Stars:
Randolph Scott,
Gene Tierney,
Dana Andrews
Edit
Cast
| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
| Gene Tierney | ... | Poppy | |
| Walter Huston | ... | Sir Guy Charteris | |
| Victor Mature | ... | Doctor Omar | |
| Ona Munson | ... | 'Mother' Gin Sling | |
| Phyllis Brooks | ... | The Chorus Girl | |
| Albert Bassermann | ... | The Commissioner | |
| Maria Ouspenskaya | ... | The Amah | |
| Eric Blore | ... | The Bookkeeper | |
| Ivan Lebedeff | ... | The Gambler | |
| Mike Mazurki | ... | The Coolie | |
 |
Clyde Fillmore | ... | The Comprador |
| Grayce Hampton | ... | The Social Leader | |
|
|
Rex Evans | ... | The Counselor |
| Mikhail Rasumny | ... | The Appraiser (as Mikhail Rasumni) | |
|
|
Michael Dalmatoff | ... | The Bartender (as Michael Delmatoff) |
Edit
Plot Summary
|
Plot Synopsis
Storyline
A young woman, Poppy, out for excitement in Shanghai, enters a gambling house owned by "Mother" Gin Sling, a dragon-lady who worked herself up from poverty to buy the casino. Sir Guy Charteris, wealthy entrepreneur, has purchased a large area of Shanghai, forcing Gin Sling to vacate by the coming Chinese New Year. Under orders from Gin Sling, who has found out Poppy is Charteris' daughter, the smarmy Doctor Omar leads Poppy deeper and deeper into an addiction to gambling and alcohol. Gin Sling, realizing that Charteris was her long-ago husband who she thinks abandoned her, plans her revenge by inviting Charteris to a Chinese New Year dinner party to expose his past indiscretions. Charteris, however, has a suprise of his own to spring on Gin Sling. Written by Doug Sederberg <vornoff@sonic.net>
Taglines:
Mystery-lure of the Far East! See more »Parents Guide:
Add content advisory for parents »
Edit
Edit
See more on IMDbPro »
See full technical specs »
Details
Country:
USARelease Date:
15 January 1942 (USA) See more »Also Known As:
La pecadora de Shanghai See more »Edit
Box Office
Budget:
$1,000,000 (estimated)Company Credits
Show more on
IMDbPro »
Technical Specs
Runtime:
(copyright length) | (1981) (restored)Sound Mix:
Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)Color:
Black and WhiteAspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1
Edit
See more »
(1918) (uncredited)
Music by Harry Carroll
Lyrics by Joseph McCarthy
Played on piano by Rex Evans at Gin Sling's dinner party
See more »
Did You Know?
Trivia
The last Hollywood film that Josef von Sternberg saw through to completion--he was fired from Macao (1952) and Jet Pilot (1957). See more »Quotes
'Mother' Gin Sling: [on being a sex slave] My soles cut open and pebbles sewn inside to keep me from running away!See more »
Crazy Credits
Opening credits: "Years ago a speck was torn away from the mystery of China and became Shanghai. A distorted mirror of problems that beset the world today, it grew into a refuge for people who wished to live between the lines of laws and customs - - a modern Tower of Babel. Neither Chinese, European, British nor American it maintained itself for years in the ever increasing whirlpool of war. Its destiny, at present, is in the lap of the Gods - - as is the destiny of all cities. Our story has nothing to do with the present." See more »Soundtracks
I'm Always Chasing Rainbows(1918) (uncredited)
Music by Harry Carroll
Lyrics by Joseph McCarthy
Played on piano by Rex Evans at Gin Sling's dinner party
See more »
Frequently Asked Questions
This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.Contribute to This Page
Watch Hollywood hits and TV favorites for free with IMDb Freedive. Start streaming on IMDb and Fire TV devices today!
Enjoy a night in with these popular movies available to stream now with Prime Video.
Most of those movie review reference books you see floating around in paperback call this film campy idiocy. It's campy only in the sense that it was made at a time when a certain degree of heavy-handedness and melodrama was the norm in films. It's certainly not idiotic. It is a story of perceived betrayal and self-degradation. The play it was based on was considered quite thought provoking and socially daring. The film was somewhat cleaned up but still addressed the main issues. The characterizations are quite involving, especially Mature's.