IMDb RATING
6.3/10
1.6K
YOUR RATING
Charlie searches for a murderer amidst numerous ghosts conjured up by a strange variety of spiritualists and occultists.Charlie searches for a murderer amidst numerous ghosts conjured up by a strange variety of spiritualists and occultists.Charlie searches for a murderer amidst numerous ghosts conjured up by a strange variety of spiritualists and occultists.
Dick Gordon
- William Bonner
- (as Richard Gordon)
Darby Jones
- Johnson
- (uncredited)
George Morrell
- Man at Elevator
- (uncredited)
Crane Whitley
- Bonner
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe title card on the DVD, which comes from the original negative, bears the original title, "Black Magic", but revisionists have superimposed "original title: 'Meeting at Midnight'" across the bottom of the screen. They've got it backwards. "Meeting at Midnight" was the new title attached to the film, about five years after its original release, in order to avoid confusion with Orson Welles' "Black Magic (1949)."
- GoofsWhen Charlie first declares himself psychic to Sgt. Matthews, we can see the pole held by a stagehand that makes a white handkerchief flutter over Charlie's head.
- Quotes
Police Sgt. Matthews: Charlie, about that bullet?
Charlie Chan: You can keep secret?
Police Sgt. Matthews: Of course!
Charlie Chan: So can I.
- ConnectionsEdited into Who Dunit Theater: Charlie Chan Black Magic (2021)
Featured review
Number One Daughter
This installment of the Chan series is more light-hearted than many, with daughter Frances replacing her brothers in the family sidekick roll, and Birmingham Brown getting a lot of screen time. The séance is another of the classic murder mystery settings used in the series - for the second time, in fact. The complaints by other reviewers about Frances Chan's acting boggle the mind - she's an appealing character, and this ain't Shakespeare, folks. It's nice to have the woman's - or girl's - touch in the series, and Sidney Toler is more affectionate towards her than to sons one and two. Hypnosis and plastic surgery are overworked gimmicks in mysteries, but hey, this is B-movie-land. Mantan Moreland is given plenty of time to clown, and he does his usual great job of it. Yes, he plays the fool, but no more so than my beloved Three Stooges, and folks, they were as white as you can get. If you can't see the difference between Stepin Fetchit and Mantan Moreland, that's a you problem.
Considering it was made in a few weeks with a minimal budget, this Chan was a fun hour of entertainment. Charlie is Charlie - one step ahead of the police he helps - Frances is a breath of fresh air, and Birmingham entertains with his comic acting. Black Magic is exactly what it set out to be - not Citizen Kane, and not trying to be.
Considering it was made in a few weeks with a minimal budget, this Chan was a fun hour of entertainment. Charlie is Charlie - one step ahead of the police he helps - Frances is a breath of fresh air, and Birmingham entertains with his comic acting. Black Magic is exactly what it set out to be - not Citizen Kane, and not trying to be.
helpful•131
- jonfrum2000
- Aug 16, 2010
- How long is Black Magic?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Meeting at Midnight
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $75,000 (estimated)
- Runtime1 hour 7 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
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