Charlie Chan at Treasure Island (1939) User Reviews (38)

One of the best of the series

[bensonmum2 · 8/10 · 15 February 2008]

While in route to San Francisco, Chan's friend Paul Essex dies of an apparent suicide. The only clue is a threatening note from someone calling himself the Zodiac. Chan soon discovers that the Zodiac is a successful mystic. Together with a would-be psychic-buster and magician named Rhadini (Cesar Romero), Chan sets out to discover the source of the Zodiac's mysticism and unmask a killer.

I thought I had seen the best of the Charlie Chan series. Man, was I ever wrong. After a first viewing, Charlie Chan at Treasure Island has become one of my very favorite Chan films. It's not just one of Toler's best, it's one of the three or four best entries in the entire series. It's got everything a fan could ask for - an interesting plot, a larger than life villain, solid acting, compelling characters, real suspense, comic relief that's actually funny, and some of the best writing I've seen in a Chan movie. The final reveal is also one of the best in the series. It's not the usual drawing room gathering of the suspects (which I usually prefer), but a drawn out, tension filled scene in a theater full of people. And speaking of tension, Chan's first meeting with the Zodiac is amazing, if not a bit frightening. Charlie Chan at Treasure Island also benefits from a strong supporting cast. Cesar Romero, Douglas Fowley, Pauline Moore, and, personal favorite, Douglass Dumbrille add considerably to the film. Overall, this is one Charlie Chan film that I'm very much look forward to revisiting - and soon.

Abracadabra – the guilty party is

[Jim Tritten · 8/10 · 26 May 2002]

Fast-paced Sidney Toler who-done-it set at and around the Century of Progress Exhibition in San Francisco harbor. The exhibition was the West Coast's parallel to the 1939 New York World's Fair and the man-made Treasure Island existed and some of its building survived as parts of a naval station for many years. A new writer and producer contributed to the successful direction of Norman Foster who also excelled in his previous Chan effort. The use of close-ups and lighting contribute to the success of this film: Charlie Chan at Treasure Island is simply the best of the Sidney Toler Chan films and runs neck and neck with Charlie Chan at the Opera done by Warner Oland.

The author of 'The Secret of the Pigmy Arrow' dies aboard an eastbound 4-engine flying boat China Clipper and the manuscript disappears as the passengers and crew disembark. 'Suicide induced by blackmail is murder.' The story line is believable and aided by Cesar Romero whose role as Fred Rhandini is reminiscent of a modern James Randi, exposing fraudulent faith healers and spiritualists. Pauline Moore returns for her third Chan film and is believable as a psychic who cannot resist the stronger mind of Dr. Zodiac.

Clues and suspicious characters abound. It is possible to figure out the mystery along with Chan who shares most of what he uncovers with the viewer. 'Obvious clues like tricks in magic – usually prove deceptive.' Comic relief is provided by Victor Sen Yung as No. 2 son, Jimmy, to include a hilarious scene wearing a magician's coat. Only one racial slur directed his way 'A chip off the old chopstick.' Other supporting cast members are excellent in their roles.

Highly recommended.

Why We Enjoyed Charlie Chan Movies!

[Chance2000esl · 7/10 · 24 September 2008]

If you grew up watching the Charlie Chan movies, this one has all the elements you remembered about them, (except for Mantan Moreland as Birmingham Brown, who's not in it) and even more. It's a puzzle movie, a who done it mystery thriller; it's full of red herrings; it quickly reveals clues and false clues; it has the comic touches and interplay of Charlie Chan and his, in this case, number two son; it has spooky scenes and music; it stages a review of all the possible suspects at the end as the real killer reveals himself. But this film also features outstanding direction and set design, high production values, great noirish and spooky photography, and a fast paced script with swift editing.

Charlie Chan (Sidney Toler) and his son Jimmy (Victor Sen Yung) are on board a clipper ship traveling from Hawaii to its landing dock at Treasure Island in San Francisco Bay. Within the first five minutes we're introduced to the villainous looking Gregory (Douglas Dumbrille) and the crux of the movie--the mystery novel that exposes a fake psychic--and then boom! The author is found dead in his seat having just received a radiogram from 'Zodiac' threatening his life.

The movie involves Charlie Chan tracking down the mysterious 'Psychic Guidance' Counselor, Dr. Zodiac, who is quickly revealed to have a false identity. A magician, Fred Rhadini (Cesar Romero), who has a magic show at the Golden Gate International Exposition on Treasure Island, is trying to expose fake spiritualists (ala Houdini). There are a couple of spooky scenes in Dr. Zodiac's house, including a séance, and another with the obligatory 'lights out' sequence, in which the killer escapes.

We don't need the commentary track to tell us (but it does) that the pace is 'lightning quick,' or that the sets of many scenes display an intentionality of fullness by the director, Norman Foster (who directed the two Davy Crockett movies for Walt Disney, as well as several 'Mr. Moto' films). For example, at Rhadini's 'Hawaiian Village' on Treasure Island (actually the Fox studio), each shot shows a richness of constant background activity (hula dancing, couples walking and talking etc.) that help push the quality of the film making to a higher rank.

In a novel ending, the murder of Dr. Zodiac is committed on the stage of Radini's act, and then, with the audience not being allowed to leave, is replayed by Chan and the police chief, who looks at the audience saying "Don't leave! The murderer might be you!" You can image how this must have struck the actual theater audience in 1939 when watching the film! But Rhadini is then attacked, so Chan uses the psychic mind reader Eve Cairo (Pauline Moore, in semi-exotic makeup) to read his own mind and reveal the killer, which Chan confirms in a demonstrative way.

There are problems, of course. It's now hard to accept or get into the stereotyped and phony Chinese accent used by the non Chinese Toler. He does a good job anyway, since he made 22 Charlie Chan movies. The fact that Charlie doesn't solve the crimes himself, but uses a mind reader is both unusual and weak: we expect Charlie to have solved it himself. And finally, it may be that the infamous (and still unidentified) Bay Area serial killer 'Zodiac' may have taken his name from this movie. We only see the Exposition as rear projection shots, except for an aerial view of Treasure Island while Chan and Jimmy are in the clipper.

Despite these shortcomings, the film is such a well made quality production that I have to give it a 7.

Note: Cesar Romero is best remembered for the 19 episodes of the campy TV 'Batman' (1966-1968), and his six 'Cisco Kid' films (1939-1941). Victor Sen Yung looks familiar since he was 'Hop Sing' on 97 episodes of the TV western 'Bonanza' (1959-1973). Pauline Moore can be seen as the heroine Sally in the serial 'King of the Texas Rangers' (1941). June Gail, as Rhadini's wife was married to Oscar Levant for 33 years (you can see them on 'The Tonight Show with Jack Paar' videos). And Douglas Fowley, the 'Chronicle' newspaper man who accompanies Chan and Rhadini throughout the movie, played the movie director in 'Singin' in the Rain' (1952).

Second note: Even better than the movie is the DVD extra 'The Real Treasure Island' with footage from the International Exposition itself. I've been working on Treasure Island for the past nine years, and it was a real pleasure to see this treasure!

Terrific Cinematography

[Lechuguilla · 6 September 2008]

On a plane headed to San Francisco, Charlie Chan and one of his sons witness the death of a famous writer. The man's death sets the film's plot in motion, as Charlie and company investigate the mysterious "Dr. Zodiac", a grim and extremely intimidating figure who is tall, wears a large mask, and has "psychic" powers.

This is one of the better films in the Charlie Chan series. The story has some really good plot misdirection, consistent with the theme of magic. I correctly picked the killer, but only after a certain plot point toward the end. Up to that point, I was way off in my guess.

But this film is superior to other Charlie Chan films mostly because of the terrific B&W cinematography. The lighting trends toward stark contrasts, with spooky shadows. Some good cross lighting and black curtain effects, together with great close-ups of eyes in the darkness, amplify the suspense. Overall visual styling is more complex, more artistic than in other Charlie Chan movies. The other-worldly persona of Dr. Zodiac combined with the striking visuals give the film real atmospheric character.

I do have a couple of complaints. The suspect pool is not terribly exciting. I would have liked for the existing suspects to have more screen time; also, I would have preferred a larger number of suspects. Second, the way in which the whodunit puzzle is solved is not standard, to say the least. But maybe back in those days, people gave as much credence to mental telepathy as they did to logical deduction.

The film uses San Francisco's "Treasure Island" as a backdrop to the story, which adds some contextual flavor to the film, though unnecessary to the plot. Overall, this is a fine film, one that will appeal especially to die hard Charlie Chan fans.

Divertimento.

[rmax304823 · 6/10 · 10 May 2011]

A mind-numbingly simple murder mystery involving Sidney Toler, as Charlie Chan, investigating the killing of his best friend, Louis Jean Heydt, in San Francisco. I may be going mad but I kind of enjoyed it. Watching this cheap film after a day of coping with the usual stresses was like a long potation of cool beer from some microbrewery. There was an immediate, rather pleasant since of dizziness and a slight euphoria.

Chan's friend Heydt is murdered aboard the China Clipper from Honolulu to the World's Fair on Treasure Island in San Francisco. Solemnly, Chan examines the body, finds a warning note from "Zodiac", and solemnly pockets the evidence and walks away with it to conduct his investigation. I don't think Chan bothers to tell his friendly colleagues in the SFPD but what the hell does it matter? The inquiry takes Chan and his son into a community of stage magicians and phony spiritualists. Toler as Chan is unfailingly polite, inquisitive, fatalistic, and filled with the wisdom of the East. "Man who find cat missing ought to skip General Tso chicken," or whatever.

In the dark night club, the dark séance room, and the dark theater -- all the settings are dark, presumably to mask the tatty sets -- one murder follows upon another until, finally, all is revealed to the amazed assembly. It will come as a surprise.

Cesar Romero is a legitimate illusionist, as magicians prefer to call themselves, and it's a little surprising to see some of the stage tricks revealed. Number Two Son is available to provide hysterical laughter as he dons a wig, a flat black hat, and a beard and apparently tries to pass himself off as a Lubavicher Rebbe. Donald MacBride is the cooperative Chief of Police. Douglass Dumbrille is an obvious suspect, if only because Douglass Dumbrille is ALWAYS an obvious suspect, even though he appears to be a genuine insurance investigator.

Absolutely ludicrous. I think I'll buy the whole pack.

Chan Comes To Bury Caesar.....sort of

[ccthemovieman-1 · 9/10 · 30 October 2006]

A lot of people think this was Sidney Toler's best Charlie Chan film. I don't know about that, but it is one of his better ones, that's for sure. It featured a lot of suspense, along with action and humor - a good bit of everything that makes the Chan movies popular among its fans.

Charlie travels to San Francisco to find out if a friend of his really committed suicide or was murdered. Son "Jimmy" (Sen Yung) comes along for the ride, for some help and some humor. The story revolves around the occult, a familiar theme in films back in the '30s and '40s. Charlie provides an a solid challenge to the charlatans who practice the occult and bilk people out of their money believing in that hocus-pocus. While Chan disproves that stuff, there is one case of a woman definitely having mind-reading abilities that our Chinese friend acknowledges.

A very young (and almost unrecognizable the first time I saw this) Caesar Romero plays a magician, and skeptic ghost-buster and something I can't say without giving away the ending. He was a likable guy and a good edition to the movie.

In all, a fun 75 minutes. Now, if we could just get this to come out DVD.

Suspicious characters and some spooky moments in fun mystery

[csteidler · 7/10 · 17 July 2012]

A nervous mystery writer drops dead mid-flight on his plane ride home to San Francisco. A heart attack? A suicide? His old friend Charlie Chan—also on the flight—thinks not. Once on the ground, Chan begins sorting through the clues and acquainting himself with a rich array of suspects.

Douglas Fowley and Cesar Romero lead a colorful cast in this fast-moving mystery featuring blackmail, a bit of knife throwing, professional jealousy, and a couple of psychics—phony or otherwise. Sidney Toler is in good form as Charlie Chan, again assisted by Victor Sen Yung as number two son Jimmy.

The plot involves a fortune teller and magician named Zodiac, a large masked figure whose true identity is somewhat mysterious. Romero is a rival magician who would like to unmask Zodiac; Fowley is a reporter who would love to catch a scoop exposing Zodiac as a fake.

Adding to Fowley's motivation is his relationship with girlfriend Pauline Moore—a "real mind reader" who he thinks is being corrupted by her employment under the phony Zodiac. Moore is all nerves, impressively edgy, in a small but key role.

Sly and sneaky Douglass Dumbrille is also hanging around suspiciously. Is he really an insurance actuary? What exactly is his interest in the manuscript that the murdered writer had finished just moments before his death?

Mr. Chan develops a plan but warns it could be dangerous: "Advise caution. To destroy false prophet, must first unmask him before eyes of believers." It all builds to an exciting climax.

The spooky atmosphere, a strong plot, and an excellent assortment of characters add up to a top-notch Chan mystery.

Golden Gate International Exposition...

[sabinalion48 · 9/10 · 25 August 2005]

Before history gets rewritten (incorrectly) on more of these comments, this movie was set at the Golden Gate International Exposition (sometimes erroneously known as the San Francisco World's Fair) which was held in San Francisco on what was known as Treasure Island in 1939 and 1940. (There is still a small museum of Expo artifacts in the horseshoe-shaped Administration Building.) It was not the "Century of Progress Exhibition" as some people have thought. That was the 1933 Fair held in Chicago! The real footage of this Exposition is terrific, especially the aerial views. I think the writers used the backdrop of the Expo to their advantage. The magic show was very entertaining and the clairvoyant was eerie. All in all, this is one of the best of the Chan series.

"Scorpio I believe, is the unfortunate symbol of death."

[classicsoncall · 7/10 · 3 April 2005]

"Charlie Chan at Treasure Island" is at the top of many Chan fan lists as their favorite; it certainly deserves that distinction. Even when the film gets creepy it's fun, as in the séance scene at the home of Dr. Zodiac.

Charlie Chan's friend Paul Essex is an apparent suicide aboard a San Francisco bound plane flight. His suicide note - "Can't escape Zodiac, Good Bye my Love, Paul".

Charlie Chan (Sidney Toler) is warned not to investigate: "Do not challenge the supernatural unless you are prepared to visit your ancestors." But investigate he does, and as usual we are introduced to a colorful cast of characters and suspects along the way. There's The Great Rhadini (Cesar Romero), who challenges other magicians and psychics, his mind reading assistant Eve Cairo (Pauline Moore), and insurance investigator Salsbury (Douglas Dumbrille). Aiding Charlie on the case are Number #2 Son Jimmy (Victor Sen Yung) and Deputy Chief Kilvaine (Donald MacBride).

Watch for a neat scene when Chan returns to the Zodiac home a second time - a black cat crosses his path.

The twist to the story comes when we learn that Romero's character Rhadini is also Dr. Zodiac, blackmailing victims with secrets from their past. He even takes a knife to the shoulder during an on stage performance in an attempt to throw suspicion in a different direction. The film borrows from a Bela Lugosi trademark, piercing dark eyes attempting to overcome psychic Eve Cairo's thoughts while under Chan's influence to flush out the killer of Zodiac's Turkish servant.

The film is set against the backdrop of the 1939 San Francisco World's Fair, Treasure Island being an attraction, along with the Century of Progress Exhibition. But as in most of the Charlie Chan films, the locale is secondary to the mystery, and this time it's a good one, with clever writing and just enough imagination to make you wonder whether mind reading might actually be real!

a nice gem

[pbalos · 9/10 · 6 July 2000]

found in this "treasure island" starring Sydney Toler.It is a 20th Century production, which makes it all worthwhile.The spirit world and seances are the backdrop for this mystery.There is a cast of some familiar faces including Cesar Romero.This film is certainly one of the better ones with a surprise ending as to the identity of the killer/blackmailer,Dr.Zodiac. Worth watching.

Charlie Chan at Treasure Island (1939) ***

[JoeKarlosi · 7/10 · 21 February 2009]

Maybe the best of the first three Sidney Toler Chans. Here, Chan investigates the killing of an author who was writing a mystery novel that exposed a fake psychic. Taking place at the San Francisco World's Fair at Treasure Island in 1939, Charlie and son Jimmy become assisted by a show magician named Rhadini (Cesar Romero), who himself has been trying put the finger on phony psychics, and who has been attempting to get a suspected Dr. Zodiac on his stage to try and unmask him. This effort benefits from the usual strong pairing of Toler and Yung, but also an added element of spookiness and the macabre through the séance and mind reading sequences featuring Dr. Zodiac. The wrap-up at the end is particularly well-realized and the killer's reveal is one of the most satisfactory surprises of the series. *** out of ****

what I wouldn't give if airline seats were like that today

[blanche-2 · 8/10 · 10 July 2013]

Sidney Toler is "Charlie Chan at Treasure Island" in this delightful 1939 20th Century Fox film. Toler is more energetic here than in the later films, where he fell into ill health. This film also features Victor Sen Yung as Jimmy Chan, Cesar Romero, and Loretta Young's sister, Sally Blane, who had a strong resemblance to her sister.

The Charlie Chan films are rich in history, both in being un-politically correct and in what was going on at the time, since many of the mysteries centered around a famous event. This event is the 1939 World Exposition on San Francisco's Treasure Island. I wonder if planes ever really looked like that - big, comfortable deco chairs that looked like suede rather than leather. As one who travels often, I sighed when I saw them. On the plane is a friend of Charlie's who has recently vacationed in Hawaii and is going home to San Francisco. He's an author, but after he receives an upsetting radiogram, he is found dead, presumably from a heart attack. Charlie doesn't buy it. He thinks it might be murder or suicide. And a purported insurance man absconds with his manuscript. The radiogram had to do with "Zodiac" and as Charlie soon learns, Zodiac is a person, and Charlie sets out to expose him as a fake psychic and figure out why his clients are committing suicide.

Because Hawaii isn't yet a state, everyone has to go through customs, which I found interesting.

Very good mystery, though I had it figured out, having seen so many mysteries in my life. It's entertaining, it's fun, it moves right along. Jimmy Chan and his various disguises is a riot.

CHARLIE CHAN AT TREASURE ISLAND (Norman Foster, 1939) ***

[Bunuel1976 · 7/10 · 18 January 2014]

Although he had been brought to the cinema and TV screens before (in 1926 and 1927) and since (until the 1981 movie misfire virtually buried him), the classic "Charlie Chan" film series officially ran between 1929 and 1949 and saw four actors portray the character of the famed Oriental sleuth. Thanks to the same American friend through whom I obtained one of the entries in the "Mr. Moto" series, I also own the entire "Charlie Chan" franchise and have already, watched, enjoyed and reviewed a handful of them in the past. Together with the more popular CHARLIE CHAN AT THE OPERA (1936; not least because of Boris Karloff's presence), the film under review is generally the best-regarded of the lot - both, in fact, are the only entries to rate a respectable ** in the esteemed "Leslie Halliwell Film Guide".

Instead of Warner Oland and Karloff, here we have Sidney Toler (a Scotsman who inherited the role after Oland's untimely death and the one actor to slip into his investigating shoes the most – 22 times!) and Cesar Romero, plus a fine supporting cast that only adds to the fun: the ubiquitous Victor Sen Yung (as Chan's favourite, "No. 2" son), red-herring Douglass Dumbrille, reporter Douglas Fowley, police chief Donald MacBride, perennially-hungry waiter Wally Vernon, a little-seen Charles Halton, and ill-fated novelist Louis Jean Heydt. The film was directed by Norman Foster (his second of three Chans) who was more involved in the aforementioned concurrent "Mr. Moto" series, including the two entries I have watched from it so far.

Toler's third stab at the role sees him land in San Francisco after waking up to the apparent suicide of his friend Heydt on the incoming flight (incidentally, I hazily recall these moments from a solitary Italian-TV broadcast of the film, along with others from the series, one Sunday morning during my childhood!). Suspecting unpleasant fellow traveler Dumbrille, Sen Yung clumsily follows him around while Toler is 'kidnapped' by MacBride's police. He is soon on the trail of the enigmatic occultist Dr. Zodiac who seems to have a stranglehold on much of the tourist resort's populace. Aiding him in unmasking the latter are rival Romero and pal Fowley…but, typically for these pulp thrillers, people and things are not to be taken at face value. Also involved in the broth are Dr. Zodiac's sinister Turkish attendant and an array of women who, however, often do more than just add local colour or provide eye candy. The plot wraps up with a lively finale depicting an eventful public challenge between prestidigitator Romero and the esoteric Dr. Zodiac.

Now you see em now you don't

[kapelusznik18 · 5/10 · 18 March 2016]

***SPOILERS*** Charlie Chan, Sidney Toler, going together with his #2 son Jimmy, Victor Sen Yung, to San Francisco's Golden Gate Ineternational Exposition gets caught up with the antics as well as murders of the mysterious Dr. Zodiac, Gerald Mohr, a man with a plan that only he knows just what the plan is. Before Charlie leaves the plane-The China Clipper- one of the passengers Paul Essex is found dead after he read a telegram from Dr. Zodiac who threatened his life if he completed his latest novel about the supernatural that he was the mine character in.

It's when Charlie gets off the plane that he meets "The Great Rhadini", Ceasar Romero, who's offered to pay $5,000.00 to Dr. Zodiac if he competes with him to show that he's a bigger fraud or magician that he is. This all leads to a numbered of murders in the San Francisco area of people connected to Dr. Zodiac who are in danger of exposing to the public as well as police to who he really is. Charlie himself is almost murdered by a flying knife that just missed him as he was attending a party in his honor with a number of the SFPD present.

***SPOILERS*** Charlie for his part is totally baffled in all the magic preformed by both Dr. Zodiac as well as "The Grest Rhadini" until Zodiac's top henchman Abdul "The Turk", who earlier tried to assassinate Charlie, is found murdered during an exhibition of his supernatural powers. This causes Charlie to suddenly realize just who this Dr. Zodiac really is and why "The Turk" was murdered in order to shut him up in what he knows what he boss is really all about. The usual confusing storyline you get in a "Charlie Chan" movie with his #2 Son Jimmy bumbling his way trough the film with a pair to torn trousers that in all the action as well as the hot weather air conditions his behind. As for the mysterious Dr. Zodiac he's so elusive, like the future and real Zodiac killer of the 1960's & 1970"s,that even when he's exposed and the movie is finally over your not quite sure just who he really is!

The Best of the Sidney Toller Charlie Chan Movies Period!

[jhumlong · 11 March 2002]

The movie starts out with Charlie and #2 Son on an ill fated plane trip to San Francisco and the mysterious death of a writer on board. This all leads to several twists in the sub-plot and the entrance of mind reader, the mysterious Dr. Zodiac and his fake spirt world trappings. It is a very good flick and if you enjoyed Warner Oland's Chan, Sidney Toller lives up to his acting especially in this film. The Treasure Island refers to the '39 Worlds Fair exhibit and is part of the plot and includes some very interesting, period photography The ending is very dramatic and I won't spoil it but you "will" like this movie so watch for it, only on Fox Movie Network or TCM, as it is not on VHS.

CONSIDERED THE BEST TOLER CHAN...GOOD SETS & PROPS...COMEDY OVERLOAD...ELONGATED ENDING

[LeonLouisRicci · 7/10 · 25 August 2021]

While this is Obviously more Pleasingly Produced than the Poverty Row Entries of this Type of Series that Followed the Initial Explosion, it Still is Pretty Lame.

With an Over-Emphasis on #2 Son (of 13 Chan youngins) and His "Funny" Disguises and Pratfalls, the Film is Constantly being Diverted from its Mystery and "Spook Show" Scenario.

Caesar Romero makes a Handsome Lead and the Gals are Cute and Spiffy.

The Plot about "Psychics" is All-Over-the-Map with its Believing-Non-Believing Script.

The Ending with Chan Leading the Hypnotized Psychic to Unmask the Murderer just Goes on and On and seemingly Never Ends, then Finally Sputters to the Unveiling.

A Good Production and Cast and a Few Good Scenes, but when it's All Over it Doesn't Amount to Much More than the Standard "Detective Series" Stuff.

Worth a Watch for Fans of this Type of Series that were Immensely Popular in the 30's and 40".

Sherlock Holmes, The Thin Man, Charlie Chan, Mr. Moto, Mr. Wong, Philo Vance, The Falcon, and More are Available for an Endless String of these Things for the Indefatigable Fan.

My personal favorite Charlie Chan film!

[admjtk1701 · 10/10 · 15 April 2000]

"Charlie Chan at Treasure Island" is my favorite Chan film even though Chan is played by Sidney Toler, who is my second favorite actor to play the distinguished detective. Even though this movie does not have the benefits of Warner Oland's performance as Chan, this stands out as the best of the series.It combines an interesting mystery plot with great atmosphere, comedy, and an excellent supporting cast including Cesar Romero, Sen Yung, and Douglas Dumbrille. It also has the mysterious Dr. Zodiac and his seance parlour. Of historical interest, also, are the scenes of the 1939 World's Fair in San Francisco. Even when you know the killer's identity, this one is worth seeing over and over again!

Magic or blackmail...Charlie Chan investigates.

[michaelRokeefe · 7/10 · 23 September 2010]

While on a flight to the 1939 World's Exposition on San Francisco's Treasure Island, Honolulu detective Charlie Chan is puzzled by the apparent suicide of a writer, who is trying to expose physic fraud. Chan and Number Two Son Jimmy(Victor Sen Yung)are not in agreement with the ruling of suicide and set out to prove that a mystic named Zodiac is responsible for several murders via suicide. A magician , The Great Rhandini(Cesar Romero), offers help in the investigation. But just how much of his help is useful? This may be one of the best in the Chan mystery franchise. The pace is brisk and held together with light-hearted humor and the usual who-done-it trappings. A very interesting story that you don't really know the ending ahead of time. The supporting cast includes: Douglas Fowley, Pauline Moore, Douglass Dumbrille, Donald MacBride and Gerald Mohr.

Black magic and blackmail

[binapiraeus · 9/10 · 10 March 2014]

When a young friend of Charlie Chan's, mystery writer Paul Essex, receives a strange message on the flight to San Francisco connected with 'Zodiac', and before the landing strangely commits suicide, Charlie feels it his duty, of course, to find out who drove him to kill himself - because, as he remarks in a conversation about the occult: black magic very often goes with blackmail...

He's invited to 'Treasure Island', part of the San Francisco World Fair, by magician Rhadini, who soon reveals that his great antagonist is - 'Mr. Zodiac'! So Charlie knows he's on the right track, especially since strange things keep happening: Essex' last script, 'The Mystery of the Pigmy Arrow', which he'd just finished on the plane, vanishes, and Charlie and son Jimmy suspect ominous 'Mr. Gregory', allegedly an insurance agent. At 'Treasure Island', they meet again; and we also get to know quite some other illustrious characters: Eve Cairo, who possesses REAL psychic powers as a mind reader and for some reason seems to believe very much in Dr. Zodiac's abilities - a fact of which her boyfriend, police reporter Pete Lewis, disapproves greatly; then there's Bessie Sibley, a reckless man-hunter, who seems quite fond of Rhadini, which in turn makes his wife Myra (a former knife thrower from vaudeville) pretty jealous...

Charlie finally manages to be granted entrance to Dr. Zodiac's house, who gives a 'performance' of his psychic abilities, communicating in a really eerie dark room séance through an ancient Egyptian priestess with Paul Essex, who declares that he hadn't been blackmailed - but Charlie is convinced otherwise. So, he returns to the house when he knows that Zodiac is out; and actually finds, hidden in a secret room behind a huge safe, a whole filing cabinet with files full of ideal blackmail information on people from all over the country! He sets the whole room on fire to destroy once and for all Zodiac's 'income source' - and then thinks of a clever way to expose the ruthless blackmailer publicly: he suggests to Rhadini to challenge Zodiac to a 'spiritual duel'...

This is certainly one of the VERY best entries in the 'Charlie Chan' series, most magnificently and literally hauntingly photographed, and marvelously acted (guest starring as 'Rhadini' is none less than one of the great matinée idols of the 30s, Cesar Romero!) - the atmosphere in this movie is so fascinating that you can't take your eyes off the screen even for a moment. And yet, amid all those creepy, murderous ongoings there is always room for some humor: Jimmy Chan, as always eager to help his Pop, rushes onto the stage for an announcement - and grabs Rhadini's 'magic' coat, which starts producing flowers, ribbons and rabbits while he's trying to make his speech! There's really NOTHING missing in this magnificent thriller...

Intriguing Circumstances

[bkoganbing · 6/10 · 28 April 2013]

Charlie Chan gets involved with the world of the supernatural when he and son Jimmy Chan are on a flight to San Francisco mystery novelist Louis Jean Heydt takes his own life. The circumstances are so intriguing that both Sidney Toler and SFPD detective Donald MacBride open an investigation.

The title is once again a misnomer. Somebody wanted to get the San Francisco World's Fair some publicity and named the film that. We get nowhere near the fair nor to Treasure Island.

Douglas Fowley a reporter and Cesar Romero a magician who has his own club where magic acts are featured declare themselves in on the hunt.

Pauline Moore a psychic is the key to this whole plot. You'll have to watch the film to see how that is. I will say that this was quite an organized blackmail racket. The villain had files on people that may have rivaled J. Edgar Hoover's.

A weirdo time at the Fair!

[JohnHowardReid · 8/10 · 26 July 2009]

"Charlie Chan at Treasure Island" stands up well, thanks mainly to Virgil Miller's superlative lighting. Plotwise, the script is full of holes, and actingwise it's also somewhat less than perfect. True, Pauline Moore makes the best of all Chan's heroines, but Cesar Romero hands in the worst performance of his career, and hammy Douglas Fowley is not far behind. Oddly, it's that very uneven actor, Douglass Dumbrille, who contributes the outstanding male portrayal. He's an obvious red herring but he handles the role with such suavely elegant aplomb, it's no wonder skillful director Norman Foster hands him so many reaction shots. And I loved Gerald Mohr's Dr Zodiac with his eerily deep, Orson Welles voice. Incidentally, in addition to Berry Kroeger and Norman Foster, see who else you can spot in the flying table audience. Isn't that Walter Lang and Edward Kaufman? Associate art director: Lewis Creber. Set decorator: Thomas Little. Music director: Samuel Kaylin. Sound recording: E. Clayton Ward, William H. Anderson. RCA Sound System. The Press Sheet bills Kaufman as "associate producer" and Sol M. Wurtzel as producer.

Brilliant Charlie Chan entry

[coltras35 · 10/10 · 2 December 2020]

This entry featuring the famous detective is engaging from the beginning. It starts with Chan's friend dying, after receiving a note. That note is connected to astrology. Chan suspects something dodgy and the trail soon leads him to doctor Zodiac, blackmail and murder. The plot is inventive, with ingenious ideas and guessing the culprit is difficult . Again the black and white picture adds to eeriness. The finale is brilliant and quite nail biting.

Charlie Chan Solves Another Crime

[StrictlyConfidential · 5/10 · 25 March 2020]

(*FYI*) - The fictitious, Asian-American character known as "Charlie Chan" is a globe-trotting detective (usually in Panama hat and suit) who (like Sherlock Holmes) makes some of the most brilliant deductions imaginable when it comes to solving serious crimes and putting the finger on the guilty party.

"Charlie Chan At Treasure Island" is a vintage, b&w crime-drama (from 1939) that stars Caucasian actor, Sidney Toler (1874-1947) in yellowface, who faithfully played the title character in twenty-two "Charlie Chan" films, spanning from the years 1938-1946.

EERIE TRIVIA

[random_ax · 6 June 2004]

The infamous Zodiac Killer might have been inspired by this film. The most probable suspect, who has since passed away, used to love this movie and became obsessed with it. If you watch the film and then read about the Zodiac case, you'll see eerie patterns in the writings of the Zodiac Killer and the character of Dr Zodiac in the film. I can easily see how a young kid could be influenced by the creepy Dr Zodiac and the way he taunted authorities..just like the Zodiac Killer would do decades later with similar phrases. Anyway, the film is easily one of the best in the series and still manages to entertain and frighten a bit. I urge you to view this one!

Strange Magic

[bnwfilmbuff · 8/10 · 24 May 2017]

Strong entry in the Chan series with Charlie's friend, writer Louis Heydt, mysteriously dying on the flight from Honolulu to San Francisco after receiving a cable that bothered him deeply. Chan's investigation into the death leads him to the eerie black magic and occult world of Dr. Zodiac. The character of Dr. Zodiac is probably the most bizarre adversary in the Chan series. Uniformly good acting from a good cast with Cesar Romero and Douglass Dumbrille standouts. Even Sen Yung managed to tone it down and gave a good performance. I enjoyed some of the magic and revealing how some of the tricks are done. Highly recommended especially to fans of the series.