Tue 25 Jul 2017
Archived CHARLIE CHAN Movie Review: CASTLE IN THE DESERT (1942).
Posted by Steve under Mystery movies , Reviews[12] Comments
CASTLE IN THE DESERT. 20th Century Fox, 1942. Sidney Toler, Arleen Whelan, Richard Derr, Douglass Dumbrille, [Victor] Sen Yung. Based on the character created by Earl Derr Biggers. Director: Harry Lachman.
A Charlie Chan movie, as you may have guessed, and the last done by 20th Century Fox. It takes place, not surprisingly, in an isolated castle in the desert, 35 miles from civilization. Its owner is a medieval historian who insists on doing his research in authentic surroundings, complete with working dungeon.
What’s more is that his wife, as it turns out, is a descendant of the notorious Borgia family, and when guests begin mysteriously dying, Charlie is brought in. Lots of mysterious events also then begin to happen, but none of them of a substantial sort. Still, this film does contain one of my favorite sayings, even though Charlie himself didn’t come up wth it. Blame this one on his Number Two son:
“Man who sit on tack better off.”
Note: Dan Stumpf has also reviewed the film on this blog. Check out his comments here.
July 26th, 2017 at 12:31 pm
This is one of those plots that inspire many TV and film writers. I remember the HARRY O episode with this setting.
July 26th, 2017 at 12:41 pm
I remember the movie as being better than this old review of mine seems to say. Some movies don’t get their just due when they’re watched the first time. This may be one of them.
That I still remember parts of this one now is, I think, convincing evidence of this.
July 26th, 2017 at 6:46 pm
Harry Lachman is my favorite director of the Charlie Chans.
July 26th, 2017 at 9:50 pm
Lachman’s a new name to me. I had to look him up. He retired from movie making in 1942, and apparently returned to being a well-regraded artist and illustrator. Here’s a list of his Chan movie, in reverse IMDb order:
Castle in the Desert (1942)
… aka “Charlie Chan in Castle in the Desert”
Charlie Chan in Rio (1941)
Dead Men Tell (1941)
… aka “Charlie Chan in Dead Men Tell”
Murder Over New York (1940)
… aka “Charlie Chan in Murder Over New York”
Charlie Chan at the Circus (1936)
July 27th, 2017 at 12:36 am
Among Harry Lachman’s other movies is Our Relations, one of the best features made by Laurel & Hardy – with an all-star supporting cast:
Jimmy Finlayson
Iris Adrian
Lona Andre
Daphne Pollard
Betty Healy
Arthur Housman
Alan Hale
Noel Madison
Ralf Harolde
– and Sidney Toler (two years before he scored the Chan gig).
Small world, isn’t it?
July 27th, 2017 at 3:02 am
The longer I do this blog, the more I learn. Thanks, Mike!
July 27th, 2017 at 4:35 am
CASTLE is one of my favorites. Any film with Dumbrille & Daniell would have to be worthwhile, and this one is very stylish. Lachman’s oeuvre includes DANTE’S INFERNO and a fine B Monster Movie, DR RENAULT’S SECRET.
July 27th, 2017 at 9:45 pm
Richard Derr is related to Earl Derr Biggers if I remember correctly.
This one is a favorite.
July 27th, 2017 at 10:34 pm
I’ve looked to see if I could verify that but so far have come up with nothing. It would be a neat connection if so.
To me, he’s one of those actors I can never put a face to the name, probably a OK trait to have for a character actor.
July 28th, 2017 at 12:28 am
Since we’re giving shout-outs to the supporting cast, let’s put it together for Ethel Griffies as the neighborhood fortuneteller Madame Saturnia, who gets to deliver one of the few in-script SPOILER WARNINGS in whodunit-movie history.
You will recall Miss Griffies as the chain-smoking bird expert in the diner scene from The Birds.
In ’41, Miss Griffies was a contract player at “Penitentiary-Fox”, as some of her fellow contractees called it.
One of her fellow players there was Arthur Treacher.
Years later, when Treacher was Merv Griffin’s announcer/sidekick, Miss Griffies was an occasional guest.
One evening, when Miss Griffies came on stage, she walked over to Arthur’s seat at the end of the couch and asked him, “What do you do here, anyway?”
Arthur Treacher gave her The Look and replied:
“Damned if I know, ducks …”
I guess you had to be there.
July 28th, 2017 at 1:21 pm
Another great story, Mike. Thanks! What all of the comments above have succeeded in doing is to make me want to see this movie again. My so-called review seems to have shrugged it off way too lightly. Maybe it was the mood I was in at the time, but I think it needed better comments from me than what I gave it.
July 29th, 2017 at 12:50 am
I think the Derr is Biggers’ mother’s family, and Richard a cousin of some sort.