Watch Charlie Chan in Reno For Free

Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!

It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional

It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

When an old friend's estranged wife is accused of murdering an evil woman, Charlie finds himself in Reno on the case. Of course, Jimmy can't keep his nose out of things and borrows his friend's car to go to Reno. On the way his car is stolen, as are his clothes. Everything now takes place in a posh hotel with Slim Summerville as an uninspired Western sheriff who has no respect for our Mr. Chan. Ms. Whitman, the accused, was found standing over the corpse and has been charged with the murder. Still, there are many other suspects, people who had reason to kill her. On is her husband, who works at a mine. Another, a slick doctor, who seems to slim his way out of any charge brought against him. One always has to weight the value of Charlie's son because he is impulsive and often on the make. Here he enlists the help of a lady's maid to investigate. The problem with him is that while he often finds interesting things, he is also a loose cannon, jumping to false conclusions. Charlie seems awfully tolerant of him. There are times here when I find too much tongue in cheek stuff. Still, it's vintage Charlie Chan and I was glad to see that none of his other kids got involved here.

An enjoyable whodunit, this film stars Sidney Toler as the formidable but good-natured sleuth on the trail of the killer of an annoying Reno socialite. Usually, I can guess correctly who the killer is, but this time I was wrong.The story is much more complex than it first appears. And it's not entirely believable. But the puzzle is what's important. The plot includes a nighttime visit to a ghost town, and some genuine humor in the form of a loquacious taxi driver.B&W lighting contributes to suspense, especially at the ghost town. Casting and acting are fine, though I could have done without irritating number two son, Jimmy (Victor Sen Yung). The actors all seem to be having a good time with their roles.Despite a weak story premise, the film gets an overall positive review from me, owing to effective B&W lighting, humor, and a surprise ending. "Thank you so much".

The second of the Sidney Toler Charlie Chan movies made by 20th Century Fox. A young woman seeking a divorce in Nevada is suspected of murder when she is seen hovering over the dead body of "the other woman" in the triangle. Charlie and his son Jimmy work together to iron out the mess and figure who is responsible. What I liked about this entry was the way Sidney Toler and Sen Yung (as Son #2) play off each other, and there's also some good comical touches in this one, including Slim Summerville as a clueless sheriff trying to make sense of the goings-on.***/****

This very good Charlie Chan mystery was made at 20th Century Fox. At this time the series still had the backing of a major studio and so the production values, acting, script, camera work, etc. were of good quality. Later, when Fox dropped the series and it found a home at Monogram, the Chan films got pretty bad with the look of cheapness in abundance. But, this film had some very good actors, such as Ricardo Cortez, Robert Lowery, and the always funny Slim Summerville supporting Sidney Toler as Chan. There seemed to be just the right amount of comic relief to keep the story moving at a good pace. Later Chan entries would go overboard with comedy with Mantan Moreland and company trying to avert the viewers from realizing what lame plots and bad acting they were watching. Of course, as in all Chan mysteries, there is no shortage of suspects in the case of a murder that is committed on a thoroughly unlikeable woman who seemed to go out of her way to alienate everyone. With several characters having a motive to kill the woman, Chan must sort out the clues and unmask the killer while continually being harassed by an inept (but very funny) sheriff, portrayed by Summerville. Victor Sen-Yung, as number two son, helps out when it counts while enduring the usual number of affectionate insults from his detective father. All in all, this movie is great fun.