Mr. Moto Takes a Chance (1938) User Reviews

The Good & Bad Of 'Mr. Moto Takes A Chance'

[ccthemovieman-1 · 7/10 · 26 January 2008]

The characters are what make this movie intriguing, and stupid.....at the same time! One is never quite sure who is what except we know Mr. Moto is a good guy and the two cameramen are innocent but too goofy. This, the fourth in the Peter Lorre-starred series of Moto films, re minded me of the Monogram latter-day Charlie Chan films, with Mantan Moreland, in which some silliness sometimes overtook the crime story. It also reminded me a bit of some old Tarzan films where you see stock footage of animals.

The mystery starts right in the beginning when we see "Victoria Mason," a Amelia Earheart- type female who flying solo around the world, suddenly sabotaging her plane and parachuting to safety. We never find out until the end what that was all about. The pretty and nicely- shaped Rochelle Hudson plays Victoria.

Anyway, to summarize briefly, the story is about a few Cambodian revolutionaries and a secret tomb- like cache for munitions. Along the way, we see Lorre in another one of his disguises, this one as an old "guru" with magical powers. I do enjoy Moto's disguises even though they fool everyone but us, the audience.

The story is fair, nothing super, but the characters in here are odd, which is good because it keeps our interest in the film. The silliness is supplied by a two-man American two-man film crew working the jungles of Cambodia. Robert Kent and Chick Chandler play "Marty" and "Chick," respectively. Yes, an actor named Chick playing a guy named Chick!.They are more like Abbott and Costello than documentary filmmakers, and their lines are really dumb most of the time.

What looked even more unrealistic but, in reality, wasn't as much as I thought, were the two main characters of from the host country in this story. They are George Regas, who plays the villain "Bokar" and J. Edward Bromberg who plays "Rajah Ali." Both these guys look and sound American, especially Bromber but Regas, who looks like comedian Henny Youngman, is from Greece and Bromberg is from Hungary/Romania! Go figure!

Hudson was an attractive actress whom I remember from the 1935 Shirley Temple movie "Curly Top," in which she was only 19 but looked more mature. When this film was shot, she was 22 or 23 and still could have passed for a good-looking 30-year-old. Sadly, this actress died of pneumonia while only in her 50s.

Anyway, if you don't mind some of the sappy dialog and you still enjoy Lorre and his disguises, this Moto episode should be worth your time checking out. It's a pretty fast-moving story and these restored editions out on DVD offer outstanding transfers. They really look good!

A hectic, funny Golden Age B picture.

[paul panzer · 7/10 · 10 December 2006]

Indeed this movie is a great deal like a Republic serial. For those who like their meat raw, that's a good thing, and fun can be had here. Granted, there is more than enough silliness to go around -- Lorre's disguise as an Asian sage is, to be blunt, not *entirely* successful, but he plays the impersonation tongue in cheek, and the end result is nothing if not amusing.

I cannot imagine what is offensive except possibly the dreaded racial stereotypes, which surely are endemic to the whole series. The idea that a B picture would be "held back for a few months" because of a matter of taste doesn't seem likely. Zanuck didn't expect Bs to be any good, and rarely screened them. There's no reason to single this film out as any sillier than many Bs of the period. There's more than enough to enjoy, and the running time is mercifully short. I'd rather watch this than any of the interminable Charlie Chan films.

One MORE reason to watch this film!

[oriensilva · 7/10 · 2 August 2005]

Another reviewer has disparaged this film, indicating that P. L. has a small part and that HE is the sole reason to watch it.

Not true.

Rochelle Hudson is an important addition to this film. Her performance in this Mr. Moto movie is well worth watching. She is also one of the most beautiful actresses you're ever likely to see.

If this movie ever becomes available on DVD, I hope I learn of it--I would gladly purchase same.

On the basis chiefly of Rochelle Hudson's contributions, I would rate this film 3 1/2 stars out of 5--or 7 out of 10. Viewers who are real Rochelle Hudson fans might well give it a 9 or a 10.

"You have seen the sign of the fiery Naga..."

[classicsoncall · 7/10 · 7 March 2007]

The fourth in the series of Twentieth Century Fox films featuring Japanese detective Mr. Moto (Peter Lorre) opens with jungle stock footage right before aviatrix Victoria Mason (Rochelle Hudson) sabotages her own airplane and parachutes to safety in the Cambodian wilds of Tong Moi. The logistics of that plane crash and her parachute landing practically right on top of Mr. Moto on an archaeological dig isn't very believable, but it does set up a fast paced adventure involving native revolutionaries and a secret munitions base. As in the first two Moto films, Lorre dons a disguise for part of the story, this time as an aged Hindu wise man. You know it's Lorre all the while, but it adds some melodrama to the occasion, and he does get to spout some appropriately sage advice to friends and foes alike.

There's an early tribute to Lorre's brilliant portrayal in the 1931 Fritz Lang film 'M'. As the two newsreel reporters continue on their way following the first encounter with Moto, Marty Weston (Robert Kent) comments to partner Chick Davis (Chick Chandler) - "If I was casting a horror picture, I'd have him play the murderer".

If you pay attention the first time Moto reaches for a carrier pigeon to relay a message to his government contact, you'll note that the cage door is already open. Makes you wonder why the pigeon stayed put!

J. Edward Bromberg adds to the colorful proceedings as Rajah Ali, walking a fine line between Bokor's (George Regas) native upstarts and his French government superiors. This time around, in addition to Moto's clever detective work and martial arts skill, he also shows he can be deadly with a machine gun. Unlike his Oriental counterparts Charlie Chan and Mr. Wong, Moto can mix it up pretty well with the bad guys, and leaves a trail of dead bodies in his wake that would make Dirty Harry proud.

All in all, an offbeat and different kind of mystery for Mr. Moto, reminiscent somewhat of the much later Charlie Chan film, 1948's "The Feathered Serpent" which takes place in an Aztec jungle setting. In that one, Roland Winters portrays Chan, and scurries around the steamy wilderness in the trademark white suit, tie and top hat. At least Moto looked more comfortable in a safari suit.

Oh, and lest I forget, let me get my vote in now for Rochelle Hudson, the actress with the sexiest shoulder of the 1930's!

"White woman, are you truly what you pretend to be?"

[utgard14 · 7/10 · 6 March 2014]

Mr. Moto goes undercover in the Cambodian jungle as an archaeologist. There he tangles with a nefarious high priest and a Rajah (J. Edward Bromberg) who's more threatening than he seems. Also in the mix are a couple of goofy newsreel photographers (Robert Kent, Chick Chandler) and an aviatrix (Rochelle Hudson).

In most of these Moto films, Peter Lorre seems to be having lots of fun and this one's no exception. He's great to watch. As another reviewer pointed out, Moto uses a disguise that strongly resembles Yoda. Chick Chandler is often annoying. Robert Kent isn't much better. The movie could only have been improved by removing their characters. J. Edward Bromberg seems like comic relief at first but his character's pretty sinister. He serves Mr. Moto his carrier pigeon for dinner! Next to Lorre, Rochelle Hudson is the best reason to watch this. She's gorgeous and does a great job playing the adventuress. She has more sex appeal with a ripped shirt exposing one bare shoulder than most actresses have fully nude.

This one plays more like a jungle adventure film than a detective one. But it's pretty fun, with neat temple sets and nice performances from Lorre and Hudson.

good Mr. Moto

[blanche-2 · 7/10 · 9 October 2011]

Peter Lorre stars in "Mr. Moto Takes a Chance," in this 1938 entry into the series. Lorre, of course, as Moto is the main reason for watching this film, but the rest of the cast here is very good: Rochelle Hudson, J. Edward Bromberg, Robert Kent, and Chick Chandler.

Working for the government, Moto is on assignment in French Cambodia to defuse two antigovernment plots, one lead by a holy man, Bokor against the local leader, Rajah Ali, and the other plot, led by Rajah Ali, who wants to start war against French rule. Parachuting into all this is Victoria Mason, aviatrix, an Amelia Earhart type but awfully pretty, flirtatious, and glamorous for someone whose plane just caught on fire. There are also two goofy newsreel photographers who keep getting into trouble.

Moto plays a double role here, that of Moto and an elderly mystic who looks like he could be over 150. Lorre gives that role just the right touch - he's not fooling the audience and he knows it. Petite Rochelle Hudson is very pretty and vivacious.

This film was the second Moto film but held back because it was thought to be not as strong as Thank You, Mr. Moto, to follow the first film. Like another poster, I'm not buying it, so the holdup remains a mystery. It's highly unlikely that Darryl Zanuck wasted five minutes thinking about the Mr. Moto series, except, of course, when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. Then he thought about the series long enough to pull it.

Stark naked shoulder feast!

[Spondonman · 7/10 · 21 April 2007]

For the 4th Fox Moto the script took a nosedive and crashed like Rochell Hudson's plane did at the beginning. You could tell it was going to be a bumpy ride as she was flying over Angkor Wat and awe-struck by its beauty for a full half second. The overall intelligent production and sinister atmosphere generated by the sets more than make up for it though and keep me coming back.

"Grave-digger" Moto played beautifully superciliously by Peter Lorre is trying to discover and stop a plot to overthrow a Cambodian Rajah (?) played by mincing and wincing J. Edward Bromberg. Two grade A American newsreel cameramen get in the way, one falling for Hudson the other supplying the comedy. It takes a long time coming but the 2 Yanks escape an execution, Moto gets to show his incredible disguising (!) and energetic jujitsu skills off, and Hudson nearly got raped too (well, what was that about with the pervy High Priest if not?!) The High Priest/Temple scenes reminded me of George Zucco in The Mummy's Hand a few years later, another great film with a gossamer-like plot than smacked of Serial. Even so, there's a few surprises along the way, and the 61 minute running time simply flew by, because you see, I enjoy watching this type of movie: I can laugh at its many faults at the same time as revelling in its many good points.

I only wish they had made this as a 13 part serial, there'd be so much more to enjoy.

Mr. Moto is one bad hombre!

[bigkingtut2000 · 8/10 · 10 May 2007]

I have recently gotten into watching the Mr. Moto series and what a treat I have discovered. Peter Lorre's diminutive Mr. Moto was an exceptional series. The series was created by the studio to compete with the Charlie Chan series and compete it did even gaining as much popularity as Oland's Charlie Chan. Now, you can't really call Kenjaro Moto, a detective,because, he is an art collector, an archaeologist, an international police person, he is what ever the episode has him being. What he is is entertaining. The soft spoken Moto, has a mean streak in him a mile wide too. No shooting the gun out of the hand of the villain...he shoots to kill. If guy comes at him with a knife...they get it back..MULTIPLE times. Shocking, really, in his ruthlessness and overt violence when dealing with crooks. This particular film has him playing a Nippon Indiana Jones type on a dig. When a female aviator, an Amelia Earhart type, whose a spy, on an around the world trek, deliberately crashes her plane near Moto's Tell. A film crew captures the plane crash on film...while shooting crocodiles in the nearby river. Kind of an interesting scene, rather unique too, one of the characters falls out of the boat in the crocodile infested waters. Of course, they were alligators, but the stunt man was at one end of the canoe and two 'live' alligators were at the other, those bad boys can fly in the water and it took some brave stunt man to hop in there with them.

Anyway, the plot involves a revolution in a tiny Asian..Siamish type country that was French controlled. Moto disguises himself as a Tibetan monk guru...and when you see him...you will know, where they came up with the character...Yoda, in the Star Wars series. There was some similarities to the Indiana Jones..Temple of Doom too. Lucas and Spielberg HAD to be watching Mr. Moto sometime. Of course, Moto puts out the mini revolt before it starts, blows up the ammunition dump...after throwing the Rajah down into the powder room..head first. The good guy gets the girl. Moto diffuses a revolution and all live happily ever after. Good cast, crisp direction, back lot adventure of the highest quality. The Mr. Moto series was as popular as Charlie Chan back in the thirties and I can see why. I think Lorre's mean streak, flipping guys all over the place, then killing when he had to was more entertaining than the cerebral Charlie Chan, at times. There was also a nice added feature on the life of Peter Lorre. It also stated why he quit the series...to avoid type casting, to get more and better parts AND get more money. He only was paid $10,000 per episode and there were 8 in all. When he found out Warner Oland was making $40,000 per and they were on par, popularity wise...well...Mr. Moto left to all of our losses. Don't miss any of the Mr. Moto series they are fun viewing and Lorre is a real charmer!

Among the Best Moto Films

[gavin6942 · 7/10 · 11 July 2014]

In the jungle near Angkor Wat in Cambodia, Mr. Moto (Peter Lorre) poses as an ineffectual archaeologist and a venerable holy man with mystical powers to help foil two insurgencies against the government.

When one of the characters say this of Lorre, you know the film is a winner: "If I was casting a horror picture, I'd have him playing the murderer." Just a brilliant nod to Lorre's career at that point, with such notable films as "M" and "Mad Love" under his belt.

One cannot deny the excellent makeup, which remains creepy even close up. Although uncredited, the work seems to have been done by Bill Cooley, a largely unknown figure. Of the mere twelve makeup jobs IMDb lists for him, only three were actually credited on screen. How much other work did he do and go unrecognized?

Mr. Moto Takes a Chance (1938) **

[JoeKarlosi · 5/10 · 25 February 2007]

I've only seen the first three Mr. Moto films at this point but this was easily the least of them so far. Mr. Moto (Peter Lorre) poses as an archaeologist in a Cambodian jungle to sabotage the anti-government plans being cooked up by leader Rajah Ali (J. Edward Bromberg). He is helped out by a female spy (Rochelle Hudson) who has "conveniently" crashed her own plane on the island. This one plays very much like an old Republic serial. Detracting much from whatever enjoyment there is here are two silly American newsreel photographers who work their way into the story, providing what I suppose they think is comic relief. ** out of ****

Weak Entry

[Michael_Elliott · 6 June 2009]

Mr. Moto Takes a Chance (1938)

** (out of 4)

Fourth and so far least entertaining film in the series has Mr. Moto (Peter Lorre) doing some work in the jungles of Cambodia. Soon a female pilot (Rochelle Hudson) crash lands as well as two reporters all of whom are about to witness a high priest perhaps commit a murder. This is certainly the weakest of the first four films, which is something I really wasn't expecting because I thought seeing Moto in a jungle would lead to a lot of entertaining things but it didn't. What really killed this film for me was the supporting characters because I found all of them to be incredibly weak. The two newsreel reporters were added for comic relief but I found them only annoying and not funny. The Hudson character was quite annoying as well. The villain of the film is also poorly written and I found him to be incredibly stupid in the things he tried doing. What makes all of this even stranger is that Moto is pretty much in the background for most of the film and I even wondered at times why he was there at all because there was so little of him. Foster's return to the series isn't anything too spectacular and I couldn't help but wish there was more here than there actually is. The overused stock footage is another issue, although the set design was pretty good.

A fun and excellent 1930's adventure film!

[shakspryn · 10/10 · 26 February 2024]

This film has a number of negative reviews on this site. In my opinion, those are all way off base! This is an adventure film! That is what it aims for and what it achieves. People who compare it unfavorably to Charlie Chan movies of the 1930's are entirely missing the point! This movie is NOT about mystery, it is about adventure. It is in the spirit of the great fiction adventure pulp magazines of the 1930's, such as Blue Book, Short Stories and Argosy.

The movie is loaded with good action scenes, such as knife fights and even a battle with machine guns. As a big fan of classic adventure stories, I love that stuff! I also enjoyed the scenes in which jungle animals such as monkeys are present. The movie should get credit for the fact that we actually see a lot of monkeys right there on the jungle set with the actors, not just in a pasted-in bit of film, such as we almost always get in such period movies.

About Mr. Moto's disguise used in this movie: People, he is a secret agent! He is not meant to be a "detective" here! I found the main disguise he uses well done and extremely effective.

The movie is teeming with interesting characters who are trying to double-cross each other, which made for a good plot. Indeed, everything about this movie is good and first-rate! So, ignore all the sour comments from those who wouldn't know a good 1930's adventure movie if it kicked them in the you-know-what. This is a movie to enjoy and appreciate.

lighthearted series

[babykaren · 7/10 · 29 December 2013]

Mr Moto's series are decently written escapism. These were written when you needed to get away from everyday issues and had to contend with radio serials. You had a mystery to solve, scenery that took you away from home-even if a set-and music. The detective is not as stiff as Holmes or Chan yet the villains and motives can be difficult to figure out. Michael Shayne series are similar. Dialogue and story lines - not language, nudity and violence. There is an episode of SG-1 (when the team goes back in time due to an old recording they found of themselves) which duplicated the cache of weapons as Mr Moto finds in this movie. Mr Lorre's character in this series allowed him to show his variety of skills - he was not limited in the roles he was given.

Here, Possibly, The Origins of Yoda!

[museumofdave · 4/10 · 14 March 2013]

Has it occurred to anyone else who has trekked through the undergrowth of this jungle thriller that at last we have the origins of Yoda? Fans of white-suited Mr. Moto may be aware he loves to masquerade in order to manipulate the unwary and the villainous, and in Mr. Moto Takes A Chance, Peter Lorre slips on a disguise...well, you just have to see it to believe it! It also appears that the studio's Central Casting dragged a couple of folks off of Hollywood Boulevard and strapped them into what might be Neo-Asian Drag, as it is a little difficult to know from looking at the poor things exactly what cultural background they are supposed to represent.

There's also an ancient temple crawling with vines, a cobra in a basket, and all the trappings of a wonderfully silly Saturday afternoon matinée adventure--all this and Rochelle Hudson! Not one of the best Mr. Moto adventures, especially when Lorre, in his Moto makeup, spends far too much time under another layer of disguise to mystify the villainous as well as willing viewers--that said, if Peter Lorre's in it, the film is probably worth a look!

An adequate entry into the series

[planktonrules · 6/10 · 25 April 2009]

Mr. Moto is posing as an archaeologist but in reality he's investigating reports that there is soon to be an uprising against the colonial government. Soon after he arrives, an Amelia Earhart-like woman conveniently "drops in" as well as two wildlife documentary film makers--making this part of rural Thailand about the busiest place in the entire country!!

Some things about MR. MOTO TAKES A CHANCE are very good and make this a stand out film. First, instead of being stuck on a cruise ship or in the big city, Moto is in Thailand--a nice departure indeed. Second, like the earliest Moto films, our hero is NOT above killing his enemies--making Moto quite the different from Charlie Chan. Later Moto films are quite different, with Moto acting almost exactly like Chan--so in general, the later the films were made the worse they were.

Unfortunately, the film also had more than its share of dopey moments, such as the bats that flew up out of the trap door. Not only were they obviously fake, but you could very, very clearly see the strings! There was also an overuse of stock footage. While fortunately the animals were correct (such as Asian elephants, tigers and orangutans) but sometimes the clips were a bit grainy and seemed like they were thrown in for padding. In addition, the one cameraman character (the obviously "goofy" one) was a bit annoying. He seemed to be some sort of unnecessary comic relief and really detracted from the film.''

Overall, not a particularly inspired film and far from one of the better films in the series. Watchable but it's only a time-passer for everyone but Moto fans.

Fun Moto entry

[coltras35 · 7/10 · 30 December 2020]

A watchable Moto entry, though it takes a little time to get going, but once it does you're engaged. The final is especially a cracker.

Fun and entertaining.

[gazzo-2 · 7/10 · 7 August 2006]

I don't have any problems with this or the series in general. Here you have an obvious Amelia Erhardt knock-off, Chick Chandler doing his usual Intrepid American on tour routine, Bromberg as a Rajah who bears a little resemblance to Dom Deluise, bogus natives gone wild stuff, etc. etc.

I enjoyed it. I liked Lorre as the Guru, reminded me of Yoda. And Rochelle Hudson was quite a looker, to boot. There isn't a lot going on here-natives revolting, gun dealiner, the Rajah knows about it but strings things along for his own ends, etc. I don't think this is any worse or better than the others in the series.

**1/2

Mr Moto in Cambodia

[bensonmum2 · 7/10 · 9 July 2015]

Posing as an archaeologist in the wilds of Cambodia, Moto is undercover trying stop a plot to overthrow the government. He is joined by an aviatrix whose plane has crashed and a couple of bumbling newsreel photographers.

This was a first time viewing for me. Not sure how I've missed it in the past. Overall, a very satisfying and entertaining experience. First off, I was struck with how different Mr Moto Takes a Chance is from the other Moto films I've seen. If I remember correctly, the rest have a more cosmopolitan setting (at least in part) than this one. The usual urban locations are exchanged for the jungle setting here. But it works. In fact, the sets look spectacular - and that's no mean feat given the budget limitations the director, Norman Foster, was working with. The movie flows nicely with hardly a wasted scene. There's plenty of menace and surprises to keep you on your toes. Cinematography is very nice and also doesn't show budget limitations. Technically, it's as good as you'd expect.

As far as the acting goes, all I really need to say is Peter Lorre. He's always (and I mean always) good. I don't know if I've ever seen a bad performance. Rochelle Hudson proves to be Lorre's equal. She really stands out in her scenes - even those with Lorre. George Regas is also worth mentioning. His menacing portrayal of Bokor is another highlight. The rest are more than adequate.

Overall, a fine, fun film that I easily rate a 7/10.

Mr. Moto finds he's not the only secret agent looking for a secret munitions warehouse.

[maksquibs · 6/10 · 10 April 2008]

If you exclude MR. MOTO'S GAMBLE which is really a 'Charlie Chan' pic, this is the least of the Moto series. The workable plot concerns a munitions warehouse hidden in a Cambodian temple, but there's a poverty row feel to the thing. Not so much in production values, but in the writing & execution, as if everyone was just going through the motions. Peter Lorre's Moto spends a third of the picture as an ancient holy man (looking & sounding like a precursor to Yoda from STAR WARS), and combining the comic relief with the romantic subplot only makes things worse. If this happens to be your first MOTO don't let it be your last. Six of the eight adventures are tremendous fun, so hang in there.

The worst

[Anne_Sharp · 1/10 · 14 September 2000]

It's a testament to the popularity of the Moto series that this dreadful botch was even released to theaters. It was, in fact, held back for several months, and it's easy to see why. While the other Moto films featured production and entertainment values considerably above that of the average "B" film, this silly and embarrassingly amateurish entry is barely recognizable as part of the same series, with its lame-brained phony Orientalia and sub-Republic serial story line. Worst of all, Peter Lorre--the only reason to watch a Moto film in the first place--spends an inordinate amount of time either offscreen or muffled in a disguise that's preposterous even for Moto.

Scary mystery sometimes confusing but funny too

[ctyankee1 · 22 January 2017]

It starts with scared animals running through the forest in this movie like they are afraid of something right in the beginning. I think it was the noise of a plane. The pilot a female, Victoria Mason is above Cambodia near Angkor Wat. She is suppose to fly around the world. She is up to something and she torches the plane to set it on fire and parachutes out.

There are also camera men from another country in a canoe with a large camera there to take pictures of that country.

Moto is at archaeological dig. He goes to where the airplane crashes and finds the torch that set the plane on fire. He knows something is not right. In the story we don't find out why she did that.

Moto is Japanese and is on this island with mixed tribes. One leader wants to kill all white people including the camera men and the other leader Rahah Ali played by J. Edward Brombergrefers wants to marry Victoria the "white" woman. He is very funny.

Moto has a cage with a homing pigeon that he sends with messages. He is kind of rough and the pigeon seems to fight. Moto puts a message on him and releases the bird. One of Rahah Ali wives is killed by a dart and they think it was a curse. Victoria is his choice as a wife. Whites are referred to in a bad way by the tribal people.

Moto is on a mission he plays a prophet or something in disguise and also a archaeologist. In disguise he directs people away from a temple. He is searching for something and finds a room full of guns and explosives in the temple. He sends Bokor and his men away to watch Moto at the dig. At some point another shipment of guns comes and all hell breaks loose.

The funny thing is that everyone's clothes are so clean in all these old movies and Rahah Ali's women are all dressed in jewels and more. Moto's suit is white and even when he comes up from the ground he is spotless. Victor Sen Yung that plays in Charlie Chan as a son is a soldier uncredited in this movie.

There is lots of shooting, lots of fires, lots of people from different countries, music, humor and mystery.

This one may be just a programmer, but Peter Lorre as Kentaro Moto makes it interesting

[Terrell-4 · 6/10 · 6 March 2008]

"I find it very wise not to interfere with the customs of other people," says Kentaro Moto, export dealer, hand-to-hand combat specialist, expert with disguises and, in Mr. Moto Takes a Chance, a spy for the French in Indochina. Since the French were quite used to interfering in the customs of the peoples they lorded it over in Indochina and elsewhere, what a let- down with this movie, in more ways than one. After the great start of the series with Think Fast, Mr. Moto and Thank You, Mr. Moto, this third in the outing sticks us back firmly in the low budget, do-what-it-takes, quickie category of programmers. Take away Peter Lorre as Moto and we'd have a tired jungle drama of nefarious natives, banana plants and the occasional crocodile. The only real mystery is how Mr. Moto keeps his white suit so clean in the jungle.

The plot involves a plot, of course, and this one is by Bokor, high priest in the royal village of Tong Moi, not too far from Angkor Wat. He wants to do some overthrowing which will involve the Raja Ali, a seemingly jolly, chubby man who delights in his wives so much that he plans to add Vicki Mason, aviatrix and adventuress who had to bail out of her plane, to the roll call. We realize that the Raja may have more on his mind than Vicki as he goes about shooting down the carrier pigeons that an archaeologist is sending out. The archaeologist, of course, is Mr. Moto. It's not long before we encounter a wizened holy man almost as ancient, it seems, as a particular temple in the jungle. I won't even hint as to who the holy man really is. We also encounter a couple of newsreel free-lancers in a dugout, a cobra in a basket, a poison dart in a beautiful back, a cameraman in a tiger pit and a lot of munitions hidden in that temple. We begin to suspect that there is another spy working for the French. The Hollywood solution, naturally, involves a good deal of gunplay and the casual blowing-up of a great, hundreds-of-years-old, vine-encrusted temple. One assumes that the French, when they learn about this from Mr. Moto, will consider the destruction regrettable. Hollywood, however, can at times be prescient, however inadvertently. Snarls one major character, "We will not rest until we drive every foreigner from Asia!" At the time, that probably seemed unlikely and terribly unfair to all those foreigners.

Lorre brings to Kentaro Moto his typical amusing mixture of lethal bonhomie and polite death-dealing, unencumbered, it seems, by any regrets. The other actors, however, are a gaggle of B players with one exception. J. Edward Bromberg plays the Raja. He was always a reliable actor and a good one. At the end of the Forties he found himself blacklisted because he refused to testify before a Congressional committee if he'd ever been a Communist. He had the quaint notion that in America a person's political beliefs are nobody's business but his own. The film jobs instantly vanished. He was married with a wife and three young kids to support. In 1950 he finally left for London, hoping to get a new start there. People who knew him said he was under a great deal of stress and had aged noticeably. He died within the year of a heart attack. He was 48. To end on a more pleasant note I'll need to mention Chick Chandler, an energetic light-comedy actor who plays the cameraman, Chick Davis. He looks just like a cross between Joe E. Brown and George W. Bush.

The Caucasian Asian detective spy forestalls destabilization

[netwallah · 5/10 · 29 May 2007]

A curious Oriental/Occidental pulp romance, in which various spies appear in a tiny eastern country not far from Cambodia. One spy is Mr. Moto (Peter Lorre), disguised as a timid archaeologist, and the other is aviatrix Victoria Mason (Rochelle Hudson), who fakes a crash landing in the kingdom. Round this out with two Yank movie guys, one handsome and in charge, the other something of a comic sidekick—he takes one look at Moto and says, "If that guy was in movies, he'd be cast as a murderer." There's also the supposedly dim Raja (J. Edward Bromberg) and an oily, conniving high priest, Bokor (George Regas). High priest of what? The god Siva (pronounced "C-vuh"). Moto discovers a German-supplied arms cache, the Rajah, not so dim after all, intercepts Moto's passenger pigeons and steals a march on Bokor. Moto also assumes a full head-mask and intervenes as a holy man from the top of the world. Bokor wants to throw out the French and all Europeans and keep Asia for the Asians; the Rajah wants to become a real Rajah; they both want the German weapons, but they both die in the explosion, and so the good news, apparently, is that the Germans haven't managed to destabilize the region. As Stephen Crane might say, the natives aren't even nouns, they're only adverbs. Though amusing, this movie is also a bizarre patchwork Orient, with Balinese-costumed dancers, a national religion worshipping Shiva, a Rajah named Ali, soldiers with uniforms like the Chinese around the time of the Boxer Rebellion—no match for the bonhomie and natural prowess of the Yanks and their clever Japanese friend. Another white man playing a clever oriental. Anyway, they all four sail off in a small ship. They're wearing suits and making jokes.

Too Many Dumb Characters

[Hitchcoc · 5/10 · 27 January 2016]

The first couple episodes introduced us to a clever deceiver. Mr. Moto has a dark side. It wasn't long before Hollywood decided to throw an Abbot and Costello angle to these films. It happened to Charlie Chan. I'll be interested to see if things get better as I make my way through this series. Lorre is always good, but throw in a bunch of moronic characters. First of all, the native people are all white American actors. They are supposedly Asian. The main bad guy looks like a New York cop. The two filmmakers are such jerks, I wish they had gotten thrown into that well. Then there's the guy who is the prince on the island. He's another fat American. None of them look even remotely like Southeast Asians. Moto does what he can but it is hardly enough to pull this one off. The whole thing with the carrier pigeons is so laughable. With all the birds around why couldn't Moto have sent the thing at a time when it wouldn't be noticed.

In the pay of th French imperialsts

[bkoganbing · 5/10 · 22 January 2021]

This Mr. Moto story has Peter Lorre working for the French government in what was then French Indochina doing a bit of espionage work. The French suspect some revolutionary plotting in a corner of the place and Lorre is there disguised as an archeologist and a Buddhist monk as it suits his purpose.

Into this scene come Amelia Earhart like aviatrix Rochelle Hudson and a pair of newsreel cameramen, Robert Kent and Chick Chandler. Also in the cast are George Regas as a scheming prime minister and the guy he works for rajah J. Edward Bromberg. Neither of those guys are what they seem.

Looking at Mr. Moto Takes A Chance now it all seems a bit silly with the Rover boy hijinks And the Mr. Moto films which were discontinued after things started getting unpleasant with America and Japan, there's lots of irony here. The Vichy French government surrendered Indo China to Japan without firing a shot.

Entertaining irony this film is.