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Charlie Chan - Chanthology


RRP: £29.99
Our Price: £11.98 (subject to change)

Editorial
Amazon.co.uk Review

Though the Charlie Chan film franchise has earned brickbats for its casting of Caucasian actors as the Asian sleuth, the movies have retained popularity among aficionados of '40s-era B-crime pictures, and the six-disc Charlie Chan Chanthology, all featuring Sidney Toler as Chan, should please that crowd. The Missouri-born Toler starred in 11 Chan pictures for Fox before purchasing the rights to the character from creator Earl Derr Biggers's widow and bringing it to budget studio Monogram, where he starred in 11 more Chans before his death in 1947 (Roland Winters replaced him in six more features until 1949). At Monogram, Chan became a Secret Service Agent (a move calculated to cut down on exotic locations and sets), and comedy was integrated into the plots via Mantan Moreland's chauffeur Birmingham Brown; Benson Fong also joined the cast as Number Three Son Tommy, with occasional appearances by daughter Frances (Frances Chan) and son Eddie (Edwin Luke, brother of Keye Luke, who played Number One Son Lee in the Fox Chans).

Other than that, the six films collected here (the first six Chans for Monogram, and all but five directed by Phil Rosen) are largely indistinguishable from one another save for the murder victims and their demises. In The Secret Service, Chan investigates the death of a wartime inventor; a San Francisco socialite expires in The Chinese Cat; daughter Frances is involved in the murder of a psychic in Meeting at Midnight (a.k.a. Black Magic); another government scientist is killed in The Jade Mask, and death by remote control is the focus of The Scarlet Clue. Director Phil Karlson (Kansas City Confidential) adds some noirish atmosphere to The Shanghai Cobra, which has bank employees dying from apparent snakebites. Dated and controversial as they may be, the Chan films are engaging diversions for vintage mystery fans. No extras are featured in the set. --Paul Gaita


Bring back Chan
Review date: 2008-04-01 Rating: 8 out of 10

A trip down memory lane from when these films were shown on Sunday afternoons in my childhood. This is a good quality reproduction and features all the capers that are typical of Chan. Not the best mystery plot you'll see iin a film, but if you enjoyed Chan or like black and white classics then you should enjoy this.

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Reviews


At last the UK gets a decent quality Chan release
Review date: 2007-08-06 Rating: 8 out of 10

In the mid forties the Monogram studio took over production of the Charlie Chan movies after Twentieth Century Fox dropped the series in 1942. Actor Sidney Toler now owned the rights to the character, and went on to star in eleven Chan films for Monogram up until his death in 1947. This box set contains the first six of those films, and given they are less well known than the Fox films, this release is welcome. Although the Monogram films had decidedly lower budgets and production values than the Fox series, there is still much to enjoy. Of the films in this set the stand out ones are director Phil Karlson's "Shanghai Cobra", with its film noir elements, and "Meeting At Midnight", with its spooky overtones. The remaining films are somewhat weaker and are rather similar to each other, but are still entertaining. The other factor that makes this set worth considering is the very good picture and sound quality, which sets it apart from the miserable efforts contained within some other UK releases. The otherwise excellent set loses one star for not including any extras.

It is to be hoped MGM will release the remaining Monogram Chan films in due course, as it is particularly regrettable Phil Karlson's second feature in the series, "Dark Alibi", is not generally available.

Relaxtion for winter day
Review date: 2006-07-13 Rating: 10 out of 10

I too have enjoyed this charlie chan box set, some of his saying are still priceless, a must for any 40 plus movie buff, a nice warm fire, comfortable chair, switch the phone off, settle down to hours of pleasure.

Now I have seen these I want more, well worth every penny!
Review date: 2006-04-28 Rating: 10 out of 10

These take me back to childhood, many a Saturday afternoon sitting in front of the fire on cold autumn day. When i ordered these i couldn't really remember much about the films except that they were one of my aunty's favorites. When i saw these at such a low price from Amazon I decided to take the chance. It has definitely paid off!!

The quality of the sound and picture are very good (for the year) and lets face it they are sixty years old or more, yet this doesn't show much and what does show only adds to the nostalgia of these brilliant films.

As soon as you start watching these films you start to remember the way Charlie gaiters across the room with that smile on his face as if thinking of a private joke. Speaking of jokes the humour in these films is also novel, Birmingham provides most of this with the expressions of his face and his big round eyes.

Not knowing much about the actors or directors means I can't comment on these, all I know is in these films they are all excellent, I hope you enjoy them as much as I have! They also will have a well earned space on my DVD shelf as they are all re-watchable and will like to pass down to my number one son who also likes them.

Product Details/Specifications


Actor(s):
Sidney Toler

Creators:
Sidney Toler (Primary Contributor)

Recording label: MGM Entertainment
Manufacturer: MGM Entertainment
EAN: 5050070022230
Binding: DVD
Number of items: 3
Format: Box set, PAL,
Release date: 2004-11-01
Audience rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
Region code: 2
Language: English (Original Language)

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