CASTLE IN THE DESERT

CASTLE IN THE DESERT (1942). Director: Harry Lachman.

Charlie Chan (Sidney Toler) receives a note from a woman named Lucy Manderley (Lenita Lane of The Bat) that asks him to come immediately to her castle located in the Mojave Desert in California. Once he arrives, Charlie learns that Lucy never sent the note, but there has apparently already been one murder. Lucy is a descendant of the notorious Lucrezia Borgia, and when a victim or two winds up poisoned, naturally suspicion falls upon her. But there are other suspects: Carl Detheridge (Richard Derr of When Worlds Collide), who worked with Charlie on a previous case; Lucy's husband (Douglass Dumbrille of Alimony), half of whose face is hidden due to a scar; sculptor Watson King (Henry Daniell), who wants to do a bust of Lucy; cadaverous Arthur Fletcher (Milton Parsons), who has a few secrets; the weird fortune teller Madame Saturnia (Ethel Griffies); and others. As the deaths occur, Charlie and the others, including son Jimmy (Victor Sen Yung), are trapped in the castle without a car or a telephone. There's an apothecary in the basement that contains numerous poisons as well as a torture chamber. Castle in the Desert gets a little silly at times, but it has a good story and is well acted by the principals. Derr and Griffies appeared in previous Chan films but played different characters. This was the last Charlie Chan film produced by Twentieth Century-Fox.

Verdict: Good fun in a creepy castle. ***.

DEAD MEN TELL

Truman Bradley as the mysterious Captain Kane

DEAD MEN TELL (1941). Director: Harry Lachman.

Charlie Chan (Sidney Toler) is invited to participate in a treasure hunt for sixty million dollars on Coco's Island, a hunt presided over by the elderly Patience Nodbury (Ethel Griffies). Poor Patience is found dead on the docked ship, the Suva Star, whose Captain Kane (Truman Bradley of The Night Before the Divorce) does his best to keep out of sight as the other passengers embark. Tales of a pirate's ghost give Jimmy Chan (Victor Sen Yung) the willies when an unknown peg-legged man goes about causing mischief. Other suspects besides the captain include prison escapee Lydig (George Reeves); pretty typist Kate (Sheila Ryan of Great Guns); the weird Gene LaFarge (the ever-cadaverous Milton Parsons); perky Laura Thursday (Kay Aldridge); and Dr. Bonney (Lenita Lane of The Mad Magician); among others. If there's any problem with Dead Men Tell it's that the ship never leaves the dock and there's no action on the aforementioned island at all. Still, this has interesting aspects and is well-acted by everyone. Ethel Griffies [Vigil in the Night] is the cast stand-out even if she isn't around too long. As a running gag, Jimmy falls into the water perhaps once too often.

Verdict: More Jimmy hijinks with "Pop." **1/2.

THE MAD MAGICIAN

THE MAD MAGICIAN (1954). Director: John Brahm.

Don Gallico (Vincent Price), who seeks fame as a world-class magician in the Victorian era, is stymied at every turn by his nasty employer Ross Ormond (Donald Randolph). So he makes the man a victim of his buzz saw device in a zestfully ghoulish sequence. This leads into other murders as he takes on Ormond's identity and has to deal with another magician, Rinaldi (John Emery), who covets his latest device, a working crematorium. With a very clever script by Crane Wilbur, The Mad Magician is very entertaining and features a winningly devilish performance by Price as a man pushed to the end of his rope. His knocking off evil people provides a certain catharsis as only a film can do. Mary Murphy is Gallico's assistant, and Patrick O'Neal plays her boyfriend, a visiting New York City police lieutenant. Eva Gabor is Claire, Ormond's wife, who used to be married to Price. Lenita Lane is Mary Prentiss, a mystery novelist who helps O'Neal get at the truth; five years later she would again appear with Price as Lizzie in The Bat. The versatile Jay Novello plays her husband, Frank, as British in this as he was South American in The Lost World (1960); he also played Mr. Merriweather in the classic "Seance" episode of I Love Lucy. The wildest scene has Price trying to get back a valise accidentally picked up by Karen which, unbeknownst to her, contains the head of Ormond! Originally presented in 3-D.

Verdict: Lots of fun! ***.

THE BAT

THE BAT (1959). Director: Crane Wilbur. 

An acceptable "light" version of the famous Mary Roberts Rinehart story features an old dark house, a mysterious masked villain who tears out throats with metal claws, an embezzler who comes to an untimely end, a doctor (Vincent Price) who breeds bats, including one that seems to be giant-sized (in one quick shot), and a famous mystery writer (Agnes Moorehead) who comes afoul of all of this because she's staying in the mansion, The Oaks, that seems to be the focus of the action. The Bat acts more like a creeping villain out of an old movie serial than anything else, and the actor who portrays him acts so sinister in his ordinary life that he sort of gives the game away (hint: it ain't Price). Moorehead and Price strike just the right note, and Lenita Lane (who also appeared with Price in The Mad Magician) is great as Moorehead's housekeeper-companion. Darla Hood, who played "Darla" in all the old Our Gang comedies as a child, shows up briefly as a witness who has an unfortunate run-in with The Bat. Director Crane Wilbur keeps things moving at a brisk pace. Some amusing moments and even a couple of quick chills but it isn't always very logical.

Verdict: Not great but has its moments. **1/2