The Jade Mask
Release date: 1945-01-26
Votes: 17
Genres: Crime, Horror, Mystery, Science Fiction
The latest assignment for respected detective Charlie Chan has come directly from the government and involves the disappearance of a scientist named Harper, who was working on an extremely important serum. When the scientist is killed, Chan must sort through all very likely suspects, including the man's sister and his butler.
Reviews
CinemaSerf
Scientist "Harper" (Frank Reicher) spends his time in his smoky lab working with his assistant "Meeker" (Hardie Albright) when he suddenly disappears and his dedicated butler "Roth" (Cyril Delevanti) asserts that he must have been murdered! Quickly it falls to "Charlie" (Sidney Toler) to help the equally proverb-prone sheriff (Al Bridge) get to the bottom of things. The house is full of gadgetry, from state-of-the-art electric gates to secret panels and high-end security throughout. Why? Well just as our intrepid sleuth is starting to wonder, the investigation is "helped" by his recently evicted No. 4 son "Eddie" (Edwin Luke) and their long time associate "Birmingham Brown" (Mantan Moreland). Always going to be more of an hindrance than an help, "Charlie" must now try to prove his mettle and discover just what did happen to "Harper" and why - and there are no shortages of twists behind the plethora of perfectly crafted masks that adorn the walls around the home. I usually found that the engagingly cowardly "Birmingham" made more of an impact on the plot with these thrillers, but here he's distinctly underused as the story rather stutters along relying more on the gizmos, dolls and low-wattage on display than a decently written script or constructed plot. Even the normally reliable Toler looks like he might have preferred to sit this one out. It's watchable enough, just not one I think I will remember for long.
Movie Recommendation
Murder She Said1961-09-26Miss Marple believes she's seen a murder in a passing-by train, yet when the police find no evidence she decides to investigate it on her own.More...
Pulp Fiction1994-09-10A burger-loving hit man, his philosophical partner, a drug-addled gangster's moll and a washed-up boxer converge in this sprawling, comedic crime caper. Their adventures unfurl in three stories that ingeniously trip back and forth in time.More...
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 22017-04-19The Guardians must fight to keep their newfound family together as they unravel the mysteries of Peter Quill's true parentage.More...
Sicario2015-09-17An idealistic FBI agent is enlisted by a government task force to aid in the escalating war against drugs at the border area between the U.S. and Mexico.More...
12 Angry Men1957-04-10The defense and the prosecution have rested and the jury is filing into the jury room to decide if a young Spanish-American is guilty or innocent of murdering his father. What begins as an open and shut case soon becomes a mini-drama of each of the jurors' prejudices and preconceptions about the trial, the accused, and each other.More...
The Empire Strikes Back1980-05-20The epic saga continues as Luke Skywalker, in hopes of defeating the evil Galactic Empire, learns the ways of the Jedi from aging master Yoda. But Darth Vader is more determined than ever to capture Luke. Meanwhile, rebel leader Princess Leia, cocky Han Solo, Chewbacca, and droids C-3PO and R2-D2 are thrown into various stages of capture, betrayal and despair.More...
The Dark Knight Rises2012-07-17Following the death of District Attorney Harvey Dent, Batman assumes responsibility for Dent's crimes to protect the late attorney's reputation and is subsequently hunted by the Gotham City Police Department. Eight years later, Batman encounters the mysterious Selina Kyle and the villainous Bane, a new terrorist leader who overwhelms Gotham's finest. The Dark Knight resurfaces to protect a city that has branded him an enemy.More...
Deadpool2016-02-09The origin story of former Special Forces operative turned mercenary Wade Wilson, who, after being subjected to a rogue experiment that leaves him with accelerated healing powers, adopts the alter ego Deadpool. Armed with his new abilities and a dark, twisted sense of humor, Deadpool hunts down the man who nearly destroyed his life.More...
Ex Machina2015-01-21Caleb, a coder at the world's largest internet company, wins a competition to spend a week at a private mountain retreat belonging to Nathan, the reclusive CEO of the company. But when Caleb arrives at the remote location he finds that he will have to participate in a strange and fascinating experiment in which he must interact with the world's first true artificial intelligence, housed in the body of a beautiful robot girl.More...
Fight Club1999-10-15A ticking-time-bomb insomniac and a slippery soap salesman channel primal male aggression into a shocking new form of therapy. Their concept catches on, with underground "fight clubs" forming in every town, until an eccentric gets in the way and ignites an out-of-control spiral toward oblivion.More...
Inception2010-07-15Cobb, a skilled thief who commits corporate espionage by infiltrating the subconscious of his targets is offered a chance to regain his old life as payment for a task considered to be impossible: "inception", the implantation of another person's idea into a target's subconscious.More...
Interstellar2014-11-05The adventures of a group of explorers who make use of a newly discovered wormhole to surpass the limitations on human space travel and conquer the vast distances involved in an interstellar voyage.More...
Star Wars1977-05-25Princess Leia is captured and held hostage by the evil Imperial forces in their effort to take over the galactic Empire. Venturesome Luke Skywalker and dashing captain Han Solo team together with the loveable robot duo R2-D2 and C-3PO to rescue the beautiful princess and restore peace and justice in the Empire.More...
Star Wars: The Force Awakens2015-12-15Thirty years after defeating the Galactic Empire, Han Solo and his allies face a new threat from the evil Kylo Ren and his army of Stormtroopers.More...
Nightcrawler2014-10-23When Lou Bloom, desperate for work, muscles into the world of L.A. crime journalism, he blurs the line between observer and participant to become the star of his own story. Aiding him in his effort is Nina, a TV-news veteran.More...
The Wolf of Wall Street2013-12-25A New York stockbroker refuses to cooperate in a large securities fraud case involving corruption on Wall Street, corporate banking world and mob infiltration. Based on Jordan Belfort's autobiography.More...
Mad Max: Fury Road2015-05-13An apocalyptic story set in the furthest reaches of our planet, in a stark desert landscape where humanity is broken, and most everyone is crazed fighting for the necessities of life. Within this world exist two rebels on the run who just might be able to restore order.More...
Inside Out2015-06-17When 11-year-old Riley moves to a new city, her Emotions team up to help her through the transition. Joy, Fear, Anger, Disgust and Sadness work together, but when Joy and Sadness get lost, they must journey through unfamiliar places to get back home.More...
WALL·E2008-06-22After hundreds of years doing what he was built for, WALL•E— a robot designed to clean up the earth—discovers a new purpose in life when he meets a sleek search robot named EVE. EVE comes to realize that WALL•E has inadvertently stumbled upon the key to the planet's future, and races back to space to report to the humans. Meanwhile, WALL•E chases EVE across the galaxy and sets into motion one of the most imaginative adventures ever brought to the big screen.More...
Lucy2014-07-25A woman, accidentally caught in a dark deal, turns the tables on her captors and transforms into a merciless warrior evolved beyond human logic.More...
Similar Movies
The Way of the Dragon...
1972-12-30After a Chinese restaurant in Rome is threatened by the mafia, who will stop at nothing to acquire the property, the owner recruits a family friend in Hong Kong, kung fu expert Tang Lung, to help them defend their business.Tightrope
1984-08-17Wes Block is a detective who's put on the case of a serial killer whose victims are young and pretty women. The murders are getting personal when the killer chooses victims who are acquaintances of Block. Even his daughters are threatened.Split Second
1992-05-01In a flooded future London, Detective Harley Stone hunts a serial killer who murdered his partner and has haunted him ever since — but he soon discovers what he is hunting might not be human.Proof of the Man
1977-10-08When an American is murdered in a Japanese inn, Tokyo police detective Munesue follows the trail of the killer to New York. There he is joined by a New York City detective named Shuftan and together they sort out the crime.Tokyo Bay
1962-05-27An investigation into a drug smuggler who is assassinated in front of an insurance building sets two detectives, Sumikawa and Akine, into a sprawling investigation through Tokyo's underworld.Crosscurrent
1971-11-19Two San Francisco detectives investigating a murder committed on one of the city's famous cable cars discover that the victim was the son of a shipping tycoon. The trail leads to a drug dealer, a shady physician and a nervous police captainLethal Weapon 2
1989-07-07Riggs and Murtaugh are on the trail of South African diplomats using their immunity to engage in criminal activities.Where the Sidewalk En...
1950-07-07A police detective's violent nature keeps him from being a good cop.Rogue Cop
1954-09-17A police detective on the take tries to catch his brother's killer.The Mummy's Ghost
1944-06-30An Egyptian high priest travels to America to reclaim the bodies of ancient Egyptian princess Ananka and her living guardian mummy Kharis. Learning that Ananka's spirit has been reincarnated into another body, he kidnaps a young woman of Egyptian descent with a mysterious resemblance to the princess. However, the high priest's greedy desires cause him to lose control of the mummy...Castle in the Desert
1942-02-02Charlie Chan, with son Jimmy on a week's pass from the Army, takes up a request for help at a castle-home, miles from anywhere in the American desert south-west and inhabited by an eccentric, reclusive historian and his wife, a descendant of Lucrezia Borgia. Once there, he finds the request's legitimacy denied by all who are present, but still necessary as one houseguest has already been murdered, the other guests are at each other's throat, and the Borgia-related chatelain is suspected...Girl Detective 001
1966-11-22Female police officer Pak Yik-wah poses as a cleaner and works in a fitness centre to gather evidence of the trainer Henry Fung's criminal activities. In the company of sister Yik-mui, the detective attends the centre's anniversary ball where she meets and falls in love with Man Hing-cheong, a well mannered guest with an elegance about him. But Yik-wah is forced to quit when her conservative father Yau-yu finds out about her moonlighting activities. To help the crime leader Wu Hung evade the police, Henry hatches a plan to murder Yau-yu who, like the wanted man, has a mole on his sole. When the sisters come under attack from a mob of gangsters following Yau-yu's disappearance, Man arrives to save the day and reveals his undercover identity. The operative hot on the heels of Wu joins hands with the sisters and lays siege to the gangster's hideout in a heroic effort to rescue the hostage and wipe out the gang.15 Minutes
2001-03-01When Eastern European criminals Oleg and Emil come to New York City to pick up their share of a heist score, Oleg steals a video camera and starts filming their activities, both legal and illegal. When they learn how the American media circus can make a remorseless killer look like the victim and make them rich, they target media-savvy NYPD Homicide Detective Eddie Flemming and media-naive FDNY Fire Marshal Jordy Warsaw, the cops investigating their murder and torching of their former criminal partner, filming everything to sell to the local tabloid TV show "Top Story."American Gangster
2007-11-02Loosely based on the criminal career of Frank Lucas, a gangster from La Grange, North Carolina, who smuggled heroin into the United States on American service planes returning from the Vietnam War, before being detained by a task force led by Newark Detective Richie Roberts.The Trixxer
2004-05-20A mysterious serial killer is shocking the underworld. Scotland Yard is investigating the case. Clues lead the detectives to Blackwhite Castle.Ambition Without Hono...
1997-06-13Tetsuya, a young yakuza, returns to his family after his adoptive father is wounded in an attack from a rival gang. In his battle against dishonorable enemies and corrupt yakuza politics, he makes an unlikely ally in a rebel cop.Georgia
1989-10-12A young woman investigates the death of her mother, who drowned when her daughter was still a baby. The question is: was it murder, suicide or merely an accident?The Thin Man
1934-05-25A husband and wife detective team takes on the search for a missing inventor and almost get killed for their efforts.Best Seller
1987-09-25Hit man Cleve approaches writer/cop Dennis about a story for his next book: How Cleve made a living, working for one of the most powerful politicians in the country. To get the story right, they travel around the country to gather statements and evidence, while strong forces use any means they can to keep the story untold.Trancers
1984-11-07Angel City trooper Jack Deth is sent back in time from 2247 to 1985 L.A. to inhabit the body of his ancestor. Deth's assignment is to find his archenemy, Whistler, who turns people into zombies, before the fiend is able to kill all the ancestors of the future's governing council.