Charlie Chan in The Jade Mask (1945)

Charlie Chan (Sidney Toler) investigates the murder of a scientist in a spooky mansion. This is one of the better Chan films made at Monogram. There's plenty of atmosphere and the claustrophobic setting of the mansion helps keep the suspense up.Thankfully, Mantan Moreland's Birmingham Brown character doesn't louse it all up with his fear of spooks and bug-eyed double takes. He's actually kind of subdued in this one, which I appreciated. No Benson Fong as Tommy Chan here (yay!) but also no Frances Chan (boo!). Instead, we get Eddie Chan (Edwin Luke). I forget what numbered son he is. He's about as exciting as watching paint dry. The part seems like it could have been pretty good with a better actor. Eddie's supposed to be a nerdy kid with long-winded textbook explanations for simple things. It could have been funny but in wooden Edwin Luke's hands, it's not. He recites a lot of his lines like he's reading them off of cue cards. Anyway, despite the presence of Eddie and Birmingham , it's still a watchable and often enjoyable Chan film. There's no jade mask anywhere in the movie, though.

This Charlie Chan feature is complicated as it is simple. Charlie(Sidney Toler)is summoned to a spooky mansion to solve the murder of a renowned scientist, who is working on a gas that can turn wood into a substance hard as steel. The government is interested in this project, thus Chan on the case. The mansion is full of family and help and all loathed the deceased scientist, that may have taken his secret formula to the grave with him. Everyone is a suspect, but Chan discovers that the murderer and his wife have hidden certain identities with human puppets and masks, making victims seem alive. This black & white film is crisp and well paced. Interesting banter between Chan and his number four son Eddie(Edwin Luke); and you can always count on chauffeur Birmingham(Mantan Moreland)to provide comic relief. Other players in this 66 minute caper: Hardie Albright, Frank Reicher, Cyril Delevanti, Janet Warren and Ralph Lewis.

Charlie Chan, played by the inimitable Sidney Toler, plays cat and mouse with a murderer. At a spooky mansion, light and shadows, combined with dreary music and an effective script, create a suitably mysterious atmosphere. The screen story also contains considerable humor.The acting is generally wooden, except for the performance of the wonderful Mantan Moreland. The film's editing and production values are weak. At one point you can see the shadow of the crew's microphone. But then, Charlie Chan movies, in general, are not known for their high technical quality.I was disappointed with the solution to the mystery, and that's my main complaint with this film. Still, watching "The Jade Mask" is not a bad way to spend a rainy Sunday afternoon, if your expectations are not too high.

This Monogram Chan outing has a nice atmosphere and some witty dialogue but a pretty way-out plot. Even the under-used Birmingham says the talk is too stratospheric (over his head!) No.4 son Edward weighs in as Chunky Chan and likewise takes a decided backseat to the deductive powers of his esteemed father Charlie.It's the usual delicious household full of family and guests who are all tetchy as usual with one another but especially with the acid professor who gets bumped off, and Charlie's attempts to solve the case. Along the way there's a few more murders thrown in, and one scene where one of the corpses walks much to Birmingham's horror and my disgust as I already knew how (many previous viewings for humble self). The professor who's supposedly working for the Government has his own gas chamber for experimentation - was there any need to march the culprit/s away at the end then?A ridiculous ending, but overall another enjoyable episode [31/38] to be savoured every now and then by the cognoscenti and ignored by the serious.