Charlie Chan: Castle in the Desert [VHS]
starring: Sidney Toler, Arleen Whelan, Richard Derr, Douglass Dumbrille, Henry Daniell
directed by: Harry Lachman
directed by: Harry Lachman
![Charlie Chan: Castle in the Desert [VHS]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51NVE7ET9FL._SL160_.jpg)
List Price: $9.98
Prices subject to change.
Price: $7.79
You Save: $2.19 (22%)Prices subject to change.
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Related Items:
Browse for similar items by category:
- VHS » VHS » Genres » Comedy » Classic Comedies » General AAS
- VHS » VHS » Genres » Musicals & Performing Arts » General AAS
- VHS » VHS » Genres » Mystery & Suspense » By Theme » Whodunnit?
- VHS » VHS » Genres » Mystery & Suspense » Classics
- VHS » VHS » Genres » Mystery & Suspense » Detectives
Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
Rating: 
- One of the Best Charlie Chan Mysteries...
1942's "Castle in the Desert" is one of the very best of the Charlie Chan series.Sidney Toler does the honors as the Honolulu Police Detective, assisted by Number Two Son, played for comic relief by Victor Sen Yung as a young soldier on pass from the Army.
Charlie is summoned by an unknown person to investigate an apparent murder at Manderley Castle, an austere Gothic replica built in the Mojave Desert by Paul Manderley.Manderley, who wears a partial mask to hide facial scarring, ... Read More
Rating: - The very best Charlie Chan film!
Not ONE of the other Charlie Chan films can touch this one. The casting is brilliant, the acting is superior, the cinematography is dramatic and, the location is PERFECT. Imagine that! A castle in the desert! This is a poisoning case, (sort of), and Charlie is summoned to help solve it. He's warned from going from the moment he's invited and, of course, one of his numerous sons (not quite so goofy as some others we've seen), tags along to watch out for his dear dad. Dark characters are everywhere and ... Read More
Rating: - Unusually High Production Values (for Charlie Chan)
Castle in the Desert has unusually high production values ... for a Charlie Chan movie.Camera angles, for example, are sophisticated, and sets are fairly elaborate, unlike some of the later Chans.The plotting is fairly complex, and the acting is mostly of professional quality, even from the minor players.All in all, this is one of my favorite in the Charlie Chan series.
Rating: 
- A Superior Plot
The Charlie Chan series was dropped by 20th Century-Fox after this film.
Charlie solves a murder which happens while he is a guest in a desert castle. Sidney Toler has the role of Charlie and Sen Yung plays Jimmy Chan.
John Larkin wrote the screenplay and the director was Harry Lachman. Mostly because of the plot, I have always considered CASTLE IN THE DESERT to be one of the better Chan movies.
Rating: - The Last Film in the"Real" Charlie Chan Series
CASTLE IN THE DESERT would be the last Charlie Chan film made by 20th Century Fox, which originated the series; the rights to the character was subsequently purchased by Monogram, where Chan films continued to be made--but to considerably less effect.Consequently, CASTLE is generally regarded as the last film of any merit in the series.It is also one of the most entertaining.A neurotic historian and his wife, a descendent of the Borgia family no less, reside in eccentric isolation in a castle in ... Read More
- One of the Best Charlie Chan Mysteries...1942's "Castle in the Desert" is one of the very best of the Charlie Chan series.Sidney Toler does the honors as the Honolulu Police Detective, assisted by Number Two Son, played for comic relief by Victor Sen Yung as a young soldier on pass from the Army.
Charlie is summoned by an unknown person to investigate an apparent murder at Manderley Castle, an austere Gothic replica built in the Mojave Desert by Paul Manderley.Manderley, who wears a partial mask to hide facial scarring, ... Read More
- The very best Charlie Chan film!Not ONE of the other Charlie Chan films can touch this one. The casting is brilliant, the acting is superior, the cinematography is dramatic and, the location is PERFECT. Imagine that! A castle in the desert! This is a poisoning case, (sort of), and Charlie is summoned to help solve it. He's warned from going from the moment he's invited and, of course, one of his numerous sons (not quite so goofy as some others we've seen), tags along to watch out for his dear dad. Dark characters are everywhere and ... Read More
- Unusually High Production Values (for Charlie Chan)Castle in the Desert has unusually high production values ... for a Charlie Chan movie.Camera angles, for example, are sophisticated, and sets are fairly elaborate, unlike some of the later Chans.The plotting is fairly complex, and the acting is mostly of professional quality, even from the minor players.All in all, this is one of my favorite in the Charlie Chan series.
- A Superior PlotThe Charlie Chan series was dropped by 20th Century-Fox after this film.
Charlie solves a murder which happens while he is a guest in a desert castle. Sidney Toler has the role of Charlie and Sen Yung plays Jimmy Chan.
John Larkin wrote the screenplay and the director was Harry Lachman. Mostly because of the plot, I have always considered CASTLE IN THE DESERT to be one of the better Chan movies.
- The Last Film in the"Real" Charlie Chan SeriesCASTLE IN THE DESERT would be the last Charlie Chan film made by 20th Century Fox, which originated the series; the rights to the character was subsequently purchased by Monogram, where Chan films continued to be made--but to considerably less effect.Consequently, CASTLE is generally regarded as the last film of any merit in the series.It is also one of the most entertaining.A neurotic historian and his wife, a descendent of the Borgia family no less, reside in eccentric isolation in a castle in ... Read More
