Charlie Chan in The Shanghai Cobra
by Phil Karlson
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Benson Fong, James Cardwell, Joan Barclay, Mantan Moreland, Sidney TolerDirector: Phil Karlson
Brand: TOLER,SIDNEY
Cinematographer: Vincent J. Farrar
Editor: Ace Herman
Producer: James S. Burkett
Writer: Earl Derr Biggers
Writer: George Callahan
Writer: George Wallace Sayre
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 1.0; English (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); French (Subtitled)
Format: Black & White, DVD, Full Screen, NTSC, Subtitled
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 64 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2004-07-06
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: MGM (Video & DVD)
Movie Reviews of Charlie Chan in The Shanghai Cobra
Movie Review: "No, U Turn Here!"
Summary: 5 Stars
Those Charlie Chan fans who only consider the topflight series at Fox worth watching, dismissing the "B" films made after Sidney Toler bought the rights to Earl Derr Biggers' famous detective and took him to Poverty Row, are truly missing out on some great fun. While it is true some of the films were marginal "B" yarns, a few were solid entries, and a couple were stellar efforts. The Shanghai Cobra is so good in fact, it easily ranks as one of the most enjoyable in the entire series.
The opening scene on a rainy night sets an atmospheric tone to this fun Chan entry, marked with humor, more action than usual, a pretty nifty little mystery, and some excellent sets which director Phil Karlson makes the most of. An interesting device of an unseen girl behind a diner jukebox occasionally gives the viewer a sense of watching an audience, watching a Charlie Chan film! It not only adds to the fun in the screenplay from George Callahan and George Wallace Sayre, but proves an integral part in solving the Cobra part of the mystery.
Nicely photographed by Vincent Farrar for Monogram, the opening sequence catches a woman following a man into a diner on a rainy night, and before it's over, the man will be the latest victim of a killer who dispatches his victims with cobra venom. The killings date all the way back to 1937 Shanghai, when Charlie brought in a suspect, only to lose him during Japanese bombings. Only Charlie, now working for the US Government, has ever seen him, so is quickly summoned to help. Adding fun to this quite serious task is Benson Fong as Charlie's son Tommy, and Mantan Moreland as Birmingham.
Chan is quite suspicious that all those murdered work for the same bank. Pretty Pauline Webster (Joan Barclay) works there too, and when the detective who was keeping an eye on her falls hard, Chan makes time to help things along. Charlie is also guarding some radium the government is keeping at the bank and searching above and beneath it for answers to the mystery. Chan's "sitting help" can't stay out of the mystery, of course, and Charlie ends up trapped below the bank trying to rescue them before uncovering the killer and his ingenious method of murder, and reuniting a family.
This atmospheric Charlie Chan "B" has charm and a fine mystery. While a few of the Poverty Row entries rate high as "B" entertainment, withinn that film context, The Shanghai Cobra actually rises above its origins to compete with the Fox "A" films; and gives them a run for their money. The film itself looks fabulous, a digital transfer nicely done. Those with only a dvd player will of course want that format. But if you have a combo player as I do, you can pick up a vhs version with the same transfer for very little. A terrific piece of "B" filmmaking and one of the most enjoyable Charlie Chan "B" entries in the entire series.
Summary of Charlie Chan in The Shanghai Cobra
From the director of Kansas City Confidential and The Silencers comes this universal Chan mystery. Containing a number of film noir elements unique to the series (such as a weary young detective, stark urban sets and a grown-up romance), The Shanghai Cobra is one of the most striking Chans of all! Charlie Chan (Sidney Toler) is called to investigate a strange and complicated series of mysterious murders by cobra venom. Soon Charlie, Number Three Son Tommy (Benson Fong) and ever-present assistant Birmhingham Brown are on the trail of an escaped con from Shanghai who's out to rob a government vault of its valuable contents: highly toxic radium!Comedy DVD Video
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