Charlie Chan's Secret

"San Francisco is the scene of Chan's newest and most baffling mystery!"

1936 1h 12m EN

👍

7.0

SOLID

★7.0TMDB · 27

CrimeMysteryThriller

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

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.

“San Francisco is the scene of Chan's newest and most baffling mystery!”

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Cast

Warner Oland
Charlie Chan
Rosina Lawrence
Alice Lowell
Charles Quigley
Dick Williams
Henrietta Crosman
Mrs. Henrietta Lowell
Edward Trevor
Fred Gage
Astrid Allwyn
Janice Lowell Gage
Herbert Mundin
Baxter
Egon Brecher
Ulrich

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Gordon Wiles
Writers: Robert Ellis, Helen Logan
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

Tight 72-minute runtime — shorter than most television pilots.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

90 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

CINEMA

Did you know

Part of the "Charlie Chan (Warner Oland) Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Gordon Wiles, shot by Rudolph Maté. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Nick DeMaggio shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Warner Oland and Rosina Lawrence and Charles Quigley carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "San Francisco is the scene of Chan's newest and most baffling mystery!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0027442 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Gordon Wiles directs. Rudolph Maté behind the camera. Nick DeMaggio cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Tight 72-minute runtime — shorter than most television pilots.
290 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
3Part of the "Charlie Chan (Warner Oland) Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
4Directed by Gordon Wiles, shot by Rudolph Maté. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Editor Nick DeMaggio shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Warner Oland and Rosina Lawrence and Charles Quigley carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "San Francisco is the scene of Chan's newest and most baffling mystery!".
8IMDB entry: tt0027442 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Only 27 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

The technical file

Cinematography: Rudolph Maté
Editing: Nick DeMaggio
Costume design: Helen A. Myron
Runtime: 72 min · 1h 12m
Status: Released
Original language: EN
Certification (US): NR
IMDB: Charlie Chan's Secret (1936)

Part of

Charlie Chan (Warner Oland) Collection

Charlie Chan Chanthology

Also by

Gordon Wiles

Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2022-06-19
★ 6/10
Again the author's fascination with all things occult features heavily in this quite gripping instalment of the "Charlie Chan" series. This one starts with the sinking of an ocean liner, and the presumed drowning of the millionaire "Allan Colby". Our sceptical detective is not convinced, and travels to San Francisco to investigate, It turns out, he was right - but only momentarily, for before the wealthy gent has any chance to explain what happened, he is stabbed and a hunt for the murderer is afoot. As you'd expect, there are loads of suspects when he arrives at the deceased man's mansion and medium "Carlotta" (Gloria Roy) succeeds in stirring everyone up nicely. It looks good, this film, plenty of wealthy Californian glamour to accompany a sparing script and a decently simmering plot. Herbert Mundin overcooks his role as the rather cowardly butler, and no "Jimmy" to foil his father's more earnest characteristics hold it back a little, but it is still quite a well built yarn with a conclusion worth staying around for and some stronger than usual supporting efforts, too.

Production companies