Charlie Chan in Reno

When an old friend's wife, on the eve of their divorce, is accused of stabbing her rival to death, Chan flies by China Clipper to solve the case.

But the scene of the crime, a hotel catering for divorcees, is full of suspects such as Wally Burke, whom the victim had rejected and humiliated in public, the mysterious Dr. Ainsley, who seems to share a dark secret from the past not only with Jeanne, but also with Mrs. Russell.

Matter of fact, there's plenty of suspects, which makes things a mite confusing as is the whole thing about the acid bottle, but maybe it's just me and I am no different from the slow-witted Wild West Sheriff (Slim Summerville) who keeps on saying, "horse feathers," and is the typical useless policeman you find in these mysteries for the sake of humour - the overly eloquent cab driver (Eddie Collins) is another comic relief.

It's a good Charlie Chan entry with the murder happening in the capital of divorce. It's quite fun and engaging with Number two son getting romantic with Iris Wong.

After a poor start with "Charlie Chan in Honolulu", Sidney Toler made a good come back with this, his second Chan film. This one is set in the divorce mecca. It has a particularly effective, atmospheric sequence in a ghost town. Ricardo Cortez is good in a supporting role. And Sen Yung is fun as Jimmy. Toler was just warming up for his masterpiece, the next film in the series, "Charlie Chan at Treasure Island."

Mary Whitman seems to be a logical suspect in the murder of Jeanne Bentley. After all, she was found standing over the body. And Jeanne was the "other woman" and the reason Mary was getting a divorce. On the surface, there seems to be little doubt of Mary's guilt. But Charlie Chan sees it all quite differently. He sees a hotel full of suspects who wanted Jeanne out of the way. Can he find the real killer before Mary is convicted of a crime she didn't commit?

Sidney Toler's second outing as Charlie Chan is a solid effort and an improvement over his first. I'm not exactly sure how to put this, but Charlie Chan in Reno is just more interesting. The plot, suspects, and setting all appealed to me. The pacing is nice with very few dull moments. I particularly enjoyed Chan's visit to the ghost town. The supporting cast is strong with Phyllis Brooks and Ricardo Cortez being the standouts. And Iris Wong as the dead woman's maid and Jimmy Chan's love interest is a delight. But one thing I really enjoyed about Charlie Chan in Reno is the way the finale is handled. I've often complained about the "cheat" endings of Chan films (and I should probably stop and just accept it as a given), but the ending here is played much straighter than some of the other entries in the series. If you're sharp enough, you actually have a chance to spot the killer before Chan's big reveal. Unfortunately, I am not that sharp.

An enjoyable whodunit, this film stars Sidney Toler as the formidable but good-natured sleuth on the trail of the killer of an annoying Reno socialite. Usually, I can guess correctly who the killer is, but this time I was wrong.

The story is much more complex than it first appears. And it's not entirely believable. But the puzzle is what's important. The plot includes a nighttime visit to a ghost town, and some genuine humor in the form of a loquacious taxi driver.

B&W lighting contributes to suspense, especially at the ghost town. Casting and acting are fine, though I could have done without irritating number two son, Jimmy (Victor Sen Yung). The actors all seem to be having a good time with their roles.

Despite a weak story premise, the film gets an overall positive review from me, owing to effective B&W lighting, humor, and a surprise ending. "Thank you so much".

The films Charlie Chan films that Sidney Toler made for Fox were very good--much better than the later cheaper series from Monogram Pictures. In fact, these Fox films were good enough that the public warmly embraced the actor who took over the role following Warner Oland's death. Now this doesn't mean that Toler was exactly like Oland--there were definite differences in the characterizations. First, there were less of the wise Chinese sayings and more cranky comments (usually directed at #2 Son, Jimmy). Second, Toler seemed less passive and more like a real detective. Still, I missed Oland but must admit that Toler was the right man to fill in for him.

As for this film in particular, Toler and Jimmy are just fine and I have no complaints about their acting or characters. However, when it comes to the murder plot, this one was much more convoluted and tough to believe than most. When they find the actual murderer at the end, you are left feeling like they just picked that person at random--especially since the motivation this person had seemed tenuous at best. Still, not a bad film at all--enjoyable throughout.