Watch Mr. Moto in Danger Island For Free

There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

While it is a pity that the story wasn't told with more visual finesse, this is trivial compared to our real-world problems. It takes a good movie to put that into perspective.

The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.

It's simply great fun, a winsome film and an occasionally over-the-top luxury fantasy that never flags.

Peter Lorre stars as Japanese investigator Mr. Moto in "Mr. Moto in Danger Island," a 1939 release also starring Jean Hersholt, Amanda Duff, Walter Hymer, Douglas Dumbrille, and Leon Ames. Originally written as a Charlie Chan script, Moto is asked to investigate the smuggling of inexpensive contraband diamonds from South America via Puerto Rico and into the U.S. that are driving down diamond prices. One investigator has already been murdered, so it's time to send in the big guns - Moto.A professional wrestler named Twister McGurk (Hymer), whom Moto meets en route to Puerto Rico, attaches himself to the diminutive detective, which brings some comic relief.Entertaining with a nice tropical atmosphere despite being made on a back lot, and it's always a joy to see Peter Lorre. Unfortunately for Mr. Moto, World War II ended his run.

Mr. Moto in Danger Island (1939) *** (out of 4)Seventh film in the series finds Mr. Moto (Peter Lorre) tracking down a diamond smuggling ring working from South America through Puerto Rico. Along the way various murders begin to happen with a wide range of suspects. I've read that this was originally intended to be an entry in Fox's Charlie Chan series but it works well as a Moto movie. The movie has a nice pace to it, a great supporting cast and overall nice story, which makes this here another winner. What works the best is the cast and the lead performance by Lorre. He certainly never struck me as looking Japanese but he certainly digs deep into the character and delivers all the goods in terms of manor isms and various gestures that he does throughout. Warren Hymer adds a lot of nice comic touches in his role as the dimwitted wrestler who befriends Moto early on in the film and refuses to leave his side. Richard Lane, from the Boston Blackie series, does a very good job in his role of the Commissioner and we also get nice turns by Jean Hersholt, Amanda Duff, Leon Ames and Paul Harvey. Even though the film is set in Puerto Rico, you really can't tell that but the stuff in the swamp contains some nice atmosphere. The movie is certainly one of the better entries in the series and makes for a nice, fast paced entertainment.

Calling this a typical Moto film is not a bad thing. After all, this series from Twentieth-Century Fox was about the equal in quality to their other series, Charlie Chan. The big difference being that Moto is more a "gun for hire"--a man who would play private detective or even mercenary in his films. Unlike the squeaky clean and rather sedate Chan, Moto is more physical and not above twisting the law or even killing someone. Sadly, he didn't kill anyone in this film--always a trademark of a great Moto film! Moto is on his way to Puerto Rico to investigate a diamond smuggling ring. However, on the way, he is laid out due to an appendicitis and it looks like Moto might have to drop the case. However, being a very sneaky character, there's a lot more to the story than this. Along for the ride is Warren Hymer, who plays Moto's new friend who tags along during the investigation. Having Hymer in the film makes sense, however, as the film was originally planned another Chan film. But, since Warner Oland had recently died, the script was adapted for Peter Lorre's series. In the usual role of Number One or Number Two son is Hymer--who gets into trouble and makes a nuisance of himself just like he was an honorary Chan himself! Overall, well written, exciting and up to the usual high standards of the series. The only serious knock I have against this film is that although it's set in Puerto Rico, there's no one who remotely looks or sounds Hispanic in the film. Of course, considering they have a German guy playing Moto, I guess this shouldn't come as much of a surprise.

Another entry in the late 1930's Mr. Moto series from Twentieth Century Fox, this one finds the Japanese sleuth in an adventure on the island of Puerto Rico. As in the first film, "Think Fast, Mr. Moto", the plot involves a diamond smuggling operation, and it too involves transport of the gems via cruise ships, however most of Mr. Moto's (Peter Lorre) investigation takes place on dry land.One of the things I liked about the early Charlie Chan movies from Fox were the references often made to events in a prior picture. In this story, Moto allows himself to be mistaken for a Japanese outlaw named Shimura. When Commissioner Gordon (Richard Lane) converses with a government official in the U.S., he learns that Moto will use any ruse as part of his investigation, learning of the escape from a Devil's Island prison camp in the prior movie, "Mysterious Mr. Moto". It's those little insertions that make the Oriental Detective movies so much fun for me.As in all the Moto films, this one features the sleuth in various martial arts scenes, but with a noticeable difference. In all the prior stories, the fights were almost always staged in very dim, even dark locations. The ones on display here are done in broad daylight, but even so, it's impossible to detect the stunt man (Harvey Parry) responsible for the flips and throws. Speaking of which, even Douglas Dumbrille's character La Costa manages to get a round house kick in on Moto's sidekick in the film, wrestler Twister McGurk (Warren Hymer). Twister becomes Moto's shadow for virtually the entire picture, thanks in part to Moto's distraction of opponent Sailor Sam in the film's opening sequence. Anyone else do a double take to see Ward Bond in that role?Keep an eye on the scenes involving Moto's second trip into the swamp in the latter half of the film. The lower half of Mr. Moto's pants are alternately muddy and clean in scenes that take place at the villains' camp.Some viewers may find the later pictures in the Moto series to be inferior to the early ones, but I have to say that this one was as entertaining to me as the ones that went before. By now one has a pretty good sense of how Moto operates, solving the crime via a series of masquerades, martial arts and clever analysis. The addition of some comic relief to this film by way of Twister's malapropisms was just the right touch to keep things moving along briskly.