The Black Camel (1931)

Excellent, Without a doubt!!

The acting in this movie is really good.

It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.

True to its essence, the characters remain on the same line and manage to entertain the viewer, each highlighting their own distinctive qualities or touches.

"The Black Camel" is the only Charlie Chan film adapted from the original Esrl Derr Biggers books to survive. "Charlie Chan Carries On" exists only in a Spanish version (which isn't bad) however, the other four, all starring Warner Oland have evidently been lost.The title by the way, refers to a symbol of death (a black camel) in that it is supposed to kneel at the door of a murdered victim.Shelah Fane is a movie star in Honolulu to film her latest feature. She wants to marry rich playboy Alan Jayner (William Post Jr.) but wants to consult her psychic Tarneverro (Bela Lugosi) for advice. He convinces her not to marry. We learn that movie director Denny Mayo had been murdered three years earlier in Hollywood and that the murder is unsolved. Many of those that had been connected to Mayo are among the guests in Honolulu. Later Shelah is found murdered in her tent on location by young lovers Jimmy Bradshaw (Robert Young in his first film) and Julie O'Neil, Shelah's friend (Sally Eilers).Inspector Charlie Chan (Oland) is brought into the case. He discovers that Tarneverro and the maid Anna (Violet Dunn) may be concealing secrets. Chan also learns Shelah's ex-husband and actor Robert Fyfe (Victor Varconi) was in Honolulu appearing in a play. He is immediately suspected. Chan gathers all of the clues, has an attempt on his life before finally identifying the murderer.Oland in his second appearance as Chan looks comfortable in his role. He is aided by his Japanese bumbling assistant Kashimo (Otto Yamaoka) a forerunner of Number One son who would not appear in the series until "Charlie Chan in Paris" in 1935. Bela Lugosi had just filmed his breakthrough role in "Dracula" (1931) and not as yet achieved international fame. Dwight Frye who appeared as "Renfield" in "Dracula", appears here as the sinister butler Jessop. Oland would appear five years later with that "other" breakthrough star from 1931, Boris Karloff in "Charlie Chan at the Opera".

Since "Charlie Chan Carries On" seems to be lost, for us today "The Black Camel" is the beginning of the magnificent, hugely popular and uniquely long-running film series about the gentle, polite, sometimes funny but also VERY clever Chinese detective, played by three different actors at two different studios. The first one, of course, was Warner Oland, who for many fans until today remains THE 'screen' Charlie Chan, utterly faithful to the character created by Earl Derr Biggers in 1923.And "The Black Camel", the first 'surviving' movie of the series, certainly is among the very best. It tells us a very intricate story about the murder of a famous actress, which seems somehow connected to the murder of another Hollywood actor a few years before; there's a mysterious 'fortune teller' in whom the actress used to confide all her secrets, and whom she'd summoned to Hawaii, where the film shooting takes place, especially to ask him whether or not she should marry a rich young playboy she'd fallen in love with; there's her ex-husband, who 'happens' to be in Honolulu as well; there's an impoverished painter who lives nearby and obviously knows too much - and so on...And Charlie Chan handles the case with the utmost delicacy, humble and courteous, and philosophical: 'Death is a black camel that kneels unbidden at every door', he cites one of his many old Asiatic sayings - hence the title... But when it comes to finding out who the murderer is, he becomes tough and unrelenting - seemingly...Charlie Chan is a REALLY special case in the history of crime movies: he was not only one of the few REALLY intelligent and capable cops (who used to be presented as plain flat-heads most of the time), but he was also the first Asian protagonist in Hollywood to be depicted in a VERY positive and sympathetic light (in contrast to the 'yellow danger' represented by 'Dr. Fu Manchu' and others at the time) - and until this day remains to us, no matter what color we are, the most amiable of all classic Hollywood police detectives! But back to "The Black Camel" seen purely as a movie, a murder mystery: the beautiful Hawaiian background is wonderfully photographed, in contrast to the very suspenseful nightly scenes, with menacing shadows masterfully used to send shivers up our spines. The cast is absolutely great - with none less than Bela Lugosi as guest star, playing the mysterious 'Tarneverro', and giving one of his best and most moving performances. In short, it's not just the 'beginning' of a wonderful and unforgettable movie series, but also an absolute masterpiece in itself.

A terrific restoration of another atrocious film! To put this review in short, if you can sit through an hour or so of Bela Lugosi portraying a Latin-American dignitary meowing like a cat(!) and El Brendel picking his nose(!) don't call us, we'll call You! Yes, it's That bad!! I'm the world's #1 Marjorie White, the only reason at all I pick out these films, to see her, but what an insult to not only the viewer, but to her memory as well, it's hard to imagine how her spunky talent got stuck in a bowser like this one! Yes, this is another in the "lost and best forgotten" category, several moderately talented actors grossly miscast in this loser, give me a script and a camera, even I can do better than this! End of story!

Almost all the earliest Charlie Chan films have disappeared over time--probably the result of fires in storage facilities. Because of this, all that remains of the earliest Chan films is a Spanish language version of CHARLIE CHAN CARRIED ON (ERAN TRECE) and BEHIND THAT CURTAIN--films that only have Chan in the last portion of the film. He is truly a supporting character, not the star. The oldest true Charlie Chan film is THE BLACK CAMEL and fortunately it was released a couple years back in THE CHARLIE CHAN COLLECTION VOLUME 3. The film stars Charlie and has all the expected plot elements. Why they put this film in volume 3 is beyond me, but at least it's now available to the public once again.While this one is very early, it at least fits the familiar formula. Of the plots I have read about earlier Chan films as well as ERAN TRECE, Chan was more of a minor character. Here, he is definitely the star and has settled into a role very familiar to die-hard fans. In addition, he has excellent supporting actors (especially Bela Lugosi) but there are no Chan children on hand to aid (or hinder) his investigation. Instead, there's a super-stupid and annoying Japanese-American sidekick who was best replaced in subsequent films! The plot involves a murdered starlet and the case is actually not too convoluted and makes more sense than many of the later entries. In fact, had #1 son been on hand instead of the Japanese-American idiot, the film would have probably earned a 9--it was THAT good compared to other films in the series. Good writing, acting and direction--this film is well worth seeking.