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·E2008-06-22What if mankind had to leave Earth and somebody forgot to turn the last robot off? After hundreds of years doing what he was built for, WALL•E 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
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.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.Naked City: Justice w...
1998-10-04A pair of taxi-driving NYC detectives take up the case of tourists who are robbed of their money and luggage by a shady limo driver. Things get dicey when the tourists accidentally get mixed up in a drug dealer's murder and money heist, while the detectives go after a hit man posing as a friend from the `hood'.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.The Silent Hour
2024-10-03While working a case as an interpreter, a hearing-impaired police detective must confront a group of criminals trying to eliminate a deaf murder witness in her apartment building.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.Red Heat
1988-06-17A tough Russian policeman is forced to partner up with a cocky Chicago police detective when he is sent to Chicago to apprehend a Georgian drug lord who killed his partner and fled the country.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.Dick Tracy
1990-04-05The comic strip detective finds his life vastly complicated when Breathless Mahoney makes advances towards him while he is trying to battle Big Boy Caprice's united mob.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.Turner & Hooch
1989-07-28Detective Scott Turner has three days left in the local police department before he moves to a bigger city to get some 'real' cases—not just misdemeanors. When Amos Reed is murdered, Scott sets himself on the case, but the closest thing to a witness to the murder is Reed's dog, Hooch, which Scott has to take care of—to avoid Hooch being 'put to sleep'.A Killing Affair
1977-09-21A white female detective is partnered with a black male detective to find the person who is committing a series of particularly vicious murders. During the course of the investigation the two begin to develop an attraction to each other, but the situation is complicated by the fact that he is married.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.Overkill
1987-12-16A Tokyo cop is sent to Los Angeles to help an LAPD detective break up a yakuza ring operating in the city.Romeo Must Die
2000-03-22Two warring gang families (one African-American, the other Chinese) maneuver for bragging rights to the Oakland, California, docks. Hang Sing and Trish O'Day uncover a trail of deceit that leaves most of the warring factions dead … or worse!Rush Hour
1998-09-18When Hong Kong Inspector Lee is summoned to Los Angeles to investigate a kidnapping, the FBI doesn't want any outside help and assigns cocky LAPD Detective James Carter to distract Lee from the case. Not content to watch the action from the sidelines, Lee and Carter form an unlikely partnership and investigate the case themselves.Out of Time
2003-10-03Matt Lee Whitlock, respected chief of police in small Banyan Key, Florida, must solve a vicious double homicide before he himself falls under suspicion. Matt Lee has to stay a few steps ahead of his own police force and everyone he's trusted in order to find out the truth.Riley Parra: Better A...
2019-08-25Detective Riley Parra grew up in the bad part of town, the crime-ridden No Man's Land. Now, as a cop in a corrupt department, she strives to make sure the rough streets she left behind aren't forgotten. One case leads her to the discovery that No Man's Land is a battleground between angels and demons, a supernatural war that's been waged for centuries. Thrown into a world she never believed could exist and told that she's the only chance of defeating evil.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.No Good Deed
2002-06-28While doing a friend a favor and searching for a runaway teenager, a police detective stumbles upon a bizarre band of criminals about to pull off a bank robbery.