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A Masterpiece!

Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

Stolen secret papers contain info on the mysterious 95th element, which could be used to build a giant atom bomb. Charlie Chan signs on to recover said papers—and also to track down the murderer who shot the secretary before snatching those vital documents. Unfortunately, most of the picture is not as exciting as that sounds....however, this late entry in the Chan series is passably entertaining as well as short and sweet. A mystery mechanism is used to commit multiple murders—one shot is always heard but two bullets are found. Can Chan solve the riddle before he too becomes a target? Benson Fong is on hand again as Chan's #3 son Tommy, while Willie Best takes on chauffeur duties for this picture (as Chattanooga Brown, cousin to Mantan Moreland's Birmingham Brown). Tommy and Chattanooga manage most of the comic relief with mildly humorous exchanges such as: Chattanooga: "My hair's getting tired." Tommy Chan: ""Your hair is tired?" Chattanooga: "Yeah, for the last 10 minutes it's been standing on end." The fact that Sidney Toler dancing the rhumba is probably the highlight of the picture might tell you something.

Starts off at the US Embassy in Mexico City. Scenery of street makes Mexico city look very nice. Walter Dorn wants to get Charlie Chan to go there regarding secret plans of a Mr Wyans which someone tried to rob twice. It is kind of confusing as to what countries are dealing with who for the plans.At the airport Chattanooga Brown is Chan's driver. When they land in Mexico City he is with Chan's son Tommy and Charlie Chan. Brown is a cousin of Birmingham Brown. Birmingham is funnier though in other episodes. Chan is waiting for Dorn to pick them up and he is told Dorn is dead.Walter Dorn is killed at a gathering at Wayan's apartment by a gunshot. There are many people invited there. Insp.Luis Carvero takes Chan there and they did not find anyone with a gun. Charlie Chan has some doubts' about Inspector Carvero because the Inspector has has a relationship with one of the women where Dorn was killed and Chan thinks he might be biased.People get shot but no gun visible. Chan has to figure out what is going on. He has figured out the new plan will make a atom bomb more explosive. So more investigating needed.

A man who has knowledge of a new element that will be used to create an enormous A- bomb is killed as he talks to a group of people who late become suspects. Since this is a matter of national security, our famous detective is called to the scene. Of course, one of his sons is there and so is Chattanooga Brown, the cousin of Birmingham Brown (the Mantan Moreland character). Because there is no identifying the bullet through ballistics, things get kind of hairy. Most of the suspects are spies or others who have done some evil dealings in the past. Soon, murders are being committed. Sometimes the humor gets in the way . Can one imagine something as serious as a nuclear weapon being created as these guys bumble around. Nevertheless, it still has some charm.

Some bad science characterizes this Monogram Charlie Chan feature with Sidney Toler. The other thing that characterizes this film is the temporary absence of chauffeur Birmingham Brown on vacation to be sure. Mantan Moreland is replaced as Chan chauffeur by Willie Best, another member of the Brown family who hails from Chattanooga.Charlie, Chattanooga, and son Benson Fong as Tommy Chan are in Mexico City on a case. Charlie was to meet a contact there who was murdered an hour before meeting Chan and Mexican detective Fortunio Bonanova is there to break the bad news. Two more murders occur before this is all solved. I do have to say that the weapon used is quite a unique gadget, firing bullets, but hardly from a traditional gun. Of course you have to get up close and personal with your target before moving a distance away to fire the weapon. And no guarantee as to how the bullet will be aimed. You'll have to see the film to know what I mean.Originality in weaponry is one thing, but the science is appalling here. The object of the Chan search is some hidden document noting a discovery of an unknown atomic element of a higher grade than Neptunium or Plutonium which they say were discovered during the Manhattan Project Research. Not so, not so at all, but I imagine few physicists went to see Monogram Pictures.Such sinister types as Charles Trowbridge, Don Costello, Barton Yarborough, George Meeker, and Marjorie Hoshelle are around and with enough mysterious background to have everyone looking twice. Marjorie Hoshelle later married Jeff Chandler, here she's the mysterious Countess Irena, fake royalty, but good nightclub singer.The Red Dragon shows the decline in quality when the Charlie Chan series went to Monogram, still even with the bad science it's hardly the worst one out there.