kapelusznik18 ***SPOLIERS*** Sidney Toler in his debut as the legendary Hawaiian detective Charlie Chan gets involved in a, you guessed it, murder that his wannabe detective and bumbling son James, Sen Yung, takes charge of. That by impersonating his famous father who at the time is in the hospital maternity ward waiting to see if his first grandchild is either a boy or a girl. The dead man Mr. Randolph, found in the ship Susan B. Jennings, has a mysterious past. In that together with his murder $300,000.00 was stolen from Judy Hayes,Phyills Brooks, who was bringing it back to her boss in Honolulu from Shanghai on a top secret mission! Before Charlie can come to his son's assistance he seemed to have solved the murder all by himself in running into the hard of hearing and creepy Dr. Cardigan, George Zucco, who seems to know more about Mr. Randolph's murder then he's letting on to. Fair but not one of the best Charlie Chan murder mystery with a lot more suspects then you would expect making it far more difficult for Charlie, even with the help of his son James, to solve. It's while trying to solve the both murder of Mr. Randolph as well as robbery of Judy Hayes' $300,000.00 another murder takes place on the ship of passenger Mrs. Carol Wayne, Claire Dodd, who as it later turned out was somehow involved with the person who murdered Mr. Raldolph who in turned, in Carol knowing too much, ended up murdering her as well!****SPOILERS*** Charlie for his part uses the now with perfect hearing, and cleared as a suspect in Mr. Randolph & Mrs. Wayne's murders, Dr. Cardigan to help him catch the killer but not knowing just quite, with as many as a dozen suspects, just who he is. That's until Charlie in setting a trap for him in thinking that he has the goods, a pair of fingerprints, on him ends up tricking the killer in total darkness, with him turning the lights off, to retrieve it. Not knowing that a flash camera was set up by Charlie for the killer, in grabbing the so-called evidence of his crime, that he fell right into it thus convicting himself, in living black& white, of the two murders- Mr. Randolph & Mrs. Wayne- as well as the stolen $300,000.00 when the film was developed!

el Cambion Charle Chan in Honolulu (1938) Sydney Toler. Sen Young (as son Jimmy). Charlie detains tramp steamer investigating a murder. Classic Chan! The well-known George Zucco plays a creepy scientist (Dr. Cardigan) who keeps a human brain alive in a jar; red-herring? A detective is aboard ship returning an escaped prisoner to prison, another red-herring? Zoo menagerie including wandering lion, all aboard ship, adds distraction to cluttered but delightful story line. Lots of colorful characters and bad acting. Keeps you guessing, can YOU guess who the murderer is? Good addition to the Chan series."Mr. Chan, what's your opinion on the case?" Charlie Chan: "Opinion like tea leaves, take time for brewing."

bkoganbing For a man who's actual job is as a detective with the Honolulu, PD, Charlie Chan sure got around. Just a quick look at the titles in the series and this man traveled the world over. This first film with Sidney Toler playing the inscrutable Oriental detective for once has him in Honolulu, solving a case on his own stomping grounds.But this murder of a passenger who's been stripped of his identity in Honolulu Harbor on a freighter comes at a most inopportune moment for the Chan family. Charlie and his wife are anxiously awaiting their daughter presenting them with their first grandchild. Here unfortunately is where the film gets a bit dopey. Number 2 son Victor Sen Yung gets the call from Honolulu PD for his father to get out to the harbor and investigate. Not wishing to disturb the old man at the hospital and wanting to prove he's a good detective too, Sen Yung goes out to the harbor and pretends to be his father. Of course later on the real Charlie Chan takes over.I really think that 20th Century Fox went overboard on this one. Even if you're a cop's son, impersonating a police officer is serious business. Charlie must have had one incredible bit of pull to keep number 2 son out of that jackpot.Still it's an average episode for the series and fans of Charlie Chan will like it.

classicsoncall "Charlie Chan in Honolulu" opens with a view of the mailbox at the Chan family home, reading 'Chas. Chan' - I never really thought of the Oriental Detective as "Chas". The film is Sidney Toler's debut as the master detective, along with Victor Sen Yung's first portrayal of Number #2 Son Jimmy, although he appears in the credits simply as Sen Yung. Layne Tom, Jr. is back, this time as unnumbered son Tommy; he had appeared in "Charlie Chan at the Circus" and "Charlie Chan at the Olympics" as Number #2 Son Charlie Jr., but his age in those films does not coincide with the chronology of the Chan offspring, which is revealed in this film to be at thirteen.With Charlie off in a rush to the Maternity Hospital for the birth of his first grandson, Tommy intercepts a phone call from the Honolulu Police stating a murder has been committed aboard the freighter Susan B. Jennings. Tommy convinces brother Jimmy to get involved with the case, then manages to stow away aboard the ship to help with the investigation. Charlie meanwhile, about to view his first grandchild strikes a comedic note describing a nurse's mistake in bringing out a black baby - "wrong flavor".By the time the elder Chan gets wind of the murder case, Jimmy is deeply embroiled in the effort, having been mistaken for the famed detective. There's a colorful cast of characters offered here, led by the sinister presence of George Zucco's character Dr. Cardigan, a criminal psychologist who reveals his penchant for nursing a live human brain! The comedic chores of the film are handled by animal keeper Hogan (Eddie Collins), who spends most of his time keeping the free ranging Oscar the Lion in check.The murder victim was to have received three hundred thousand dollars in a business deal, delivered by Miss Judy Hayes (Phyllis Brooks). Fellow passenger Carol Wayne is eventually revealed to be the wife of the victim, seeking a divorce and in a pact with the ship's captain to steal the money; Ms. Wayne/Hillman eventually becomes victim number two. Rounding out the passenger list aboard the freighter, and thrown in as likely suspects are a supposed Detective Arnold (Richard Lane) and his captive Johnny McCoy (Marc Lawrence). Chan smokes out the phony detective, a McCoy accomplice, as he sets up the ship's captain (Robert Barrat) to reveal his identity with a rigged gun threaded to a hidden camera; the camera reveals the person who made an attempt on Chan's life as he comes close to solving the mystery.As Charlie Chan films go, this one is probably about middle of the road in terms of interest, though a fine effort for Sidney Toler's first portrayal of Chan. For the viewer, there's a little more to go on to solve the murders than the earlier Warner Oland mysteries, so the revelation does not come off as a complete surprise. But the real payoff comes at the end of the film when Charlie receives word that he has become a new "grand pop" - his response to the news: "In present case am only innocent bystander."