Charlie Chan's Secret
Charlie Chan's Secret
NR | 10 January 1936 (USA)
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Allen Colby, heir to a huge fortune, is presumed drowned after an ocean liner sinks off the coast of Honolulu. Mysteriously, Colby reappears at his mansion only to be murdered soon after. When his body is discovered during a seance, everyone in attendance becomes a suspect, and it's up to Chan to find the murderer before he or she strikes again.

Reviews
LouHomey From my favorite movies..
BoardChiri Bad Acting and worse Bad Screenplay
Chirphymium It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional
Micah Lloyd Excellent characters with emotional depth. My wife, daughter and granddaughter all enjoyed it...and me, too! Very good movie! You won't be disappointed.
gridoon2018 One of the better early Charlie Chan entries, with some spooky atmospherics (even if you know immediately that the psychics are fakes), some twists, and an outcome that may be surprising precisely because it names as the guilty party one of the most suspicious characters! Major debit: the butler's unsuccessful comic relief. My favorite Chan line: "Best place for skeleton is in family closet". **1/2 out of 4.
Hitchcoc I really enjoyed this. Our irrepressible detective finds himself at the home of an old friend who is trying to locate her son who disappeared years ago. While it is unlikely he is alive, her connections to the spirit world through a couple Mystics and her ouija board tell her otherwise. Charlie, respecting the workings of the occult from his Oriental heritage, isn't sure the young man is dead. Well, interestingly enough, he turns up one day, only to be killed at a seance. This throws the whole issue of inheritance into a tizzy. The old lady would be disinherited and her children affected. There are four or five suspects but no evidence. Charlie must set some kind of trap to draw out the culprit. While I pretty much had this figured out way ahead, I still enjoyed it. Mainly, because I wanted to see how he played his cards. By the way, there is some pretty good CSI work done here.
ccthemovieman-1 I always enjoy listening to Charlie Chan quote his famous proverbs, or friendly digs to his kid or helper and I always appreciate his wonderful manners. Charlie's parents certainly taught him how to say "please," "thank you" and respect other human beings. He always carries himself in a gentlemanly manner. Mr. Chan never gets mad, just never loses his temper no matter what happens. He takes everything in stride.I mention all of this because those were the main attributes to this story - his manner. Missing were two key ingredients that make Charlie Chan films fun to me: his kid (whoever he or she might be) and the humor. This story didn't have any of Charlie's kids helping him and they were missed. It just wasn't the same without Number One Son either helping him or getting in his way. Also, where was the comedy? That, too, was sorely missed.That isn't to say I still didn't enjoy the movie; I did, but it wasn't as much as most of them. I did appreciate the ending which was clever but not confusing. The story was fair-at-best, and sometimes all these occult-type themes get tiresome, at least when these séance scenes get silly, as they did in this film. Still, some parts will get your attention, such as a missing man suddenly showing up at the reading of the will, and then moments later being killed!Overall, a more serious "Chan" story that fans of "B" horror flicks might enjoy more than those of us who want a little humor and kinship along with our Charlie Chan fables.
Chris Gaskin I've just seen Charlie Chan's Secret for the first time and think it is one of the better Chan movies.In this one, Charlie Chan is sent to Colby Mansion to investigate a murder of one of the Colby family. This place is very spooky with hidden doorways, secret passages and séances. There are quite a few suspects on who the murderer is. Charlie is not helped by any of his sons in this.This movie is quite spooky throughout and reminds me of The House On Haunted Hill in some parts, though we haven't got Vincent Price in this.The cast includes Warner Oland as Charlie, who plays the part well as always.Have a good fright with Charlie Chan's Secret. Excellent.Rating: 3 stars out of 5.