Mr. Moto und die geheimnisvolle Insel

I know Mr. Moto movies are formulaic, but with this one they got the formula wrong. That's not to say it isn't fairly well put together and somewhat entertaining, but it's not worth its current rating.

The major flaw is that there are too many suspects who, in their white flannel suits, look and act too much alike to the point that at the end it seems like they just spun the bottle to select the bad one. Also, the comic relief, Twister McGurk, is used again and again with the same schtick and it gets to be annoying not entertaining. Finally, you can practically hear the director yell "Cut" as the stuntmen switch off with the actors for the action portions and back again.

Watch it along with all the other Mr. Motos, just don't expect too much.

This is a murder mystery, with Mr. Moto, for those of you who don't know, as the crafty man investigating the case. Like Charlie Chan, he's a private investigator.

Peter Lorre had a "cool" charisma about him, much like Basil Rathbone, Humphrey Bogart, and others who played such roles.

Films like this either take one or a combination of two of the following: 1. Mystery with clues that the audience can use. 2. Mystery with atmosphere and humor 3. Mystery with a twist.

Just about none have all three. One may cite "Chinatown" as a possibility, but the atmosphere isn't what I would call strong in that one. Atmosphere and humor come either without twists or without clues.

This film uses the first two elements. It would be far fetched to say there is a twist. There is an abundance of atmosphere and humor, and many clues.

We know very soon who the killer is. At first it isn't easy, because all of the suspects look alike, middle aged white men with mustaches, but once we tell them apart, and once the atmosphere is established, we do know which one it is.

That doesn't take away from the adventure, though. Lots of good elements make this an enjoyable film.

Moto #7/8 finds us in "Porto Rico" with a great print, some nice sets and atmospheric photography and a sterling cast giving the flimsy plot all they had.

Moto played as ever by Peter Lorre is called in by the Government in cahoots with the Governor to root out an international gang of diamond smugglers, discovers straight away that one the Governor's confidantes must be one of the baddies, if not the top dirty dog. Just picture the high profile suspects: Leon Ames, Douglas Dumbrille, Richard Lane, Jean Hersholt, Charles Brown or even Robert Lowery, all shifty and at each others throats from the word go but which one is guilty? At least Moto's sidekick wrestler Warren Hymer has no doubts, even if he is paradoxically also continually bewildered. Mention ghosts and Willie Best makes an appearance! The dialogue was surprisingly witty, the production values high - from the delightful evening party to the beads of sweat on various foreheads. The running gag was supplied by McGurk's unstinting admiration for Moto always besting him at judo - he sure took some beating and shooting at in here!

Great non-heavy entertainment as usual, an excellent entry in the series.

Mr. Moto in Danger Island (1939)

*** (out of 4)

Seventh film in the series finds Mr. Moto (Peter Lorre) tracking down a diamond smuggling ring working from South America through Puerto Rico. Along the way various murders begin to happen with a wide range of suspects. I've read that this was originally intended to be an entry in Fox's Charlie Chan series but it works well as a Moto movie. The movie has a nice pace to it, a great supporting cast and overall nice story, which makes this here another winner. What works the best is the cast and the lead performance by Lorre. He certainly never struck me as looking Japanese but he certainly digs deep into the character and delivers all the goods in terms of manor isms and various gestures that he does throughout. Warren Hymer adds a lot of nice comic touches in his role as the dimwitted wrestler who befriends Moto early on in the film and refuses to leave his side. Richard Lane, from the Boston Blackie series, does a very good job in his role of the Commissioner and we also get nice turns by Jean Hersholt, Amanda Duff, Leon Ames and Paul Harvey. Even though the film is set in Puerto Rico, you really can't tell that but the stuff in the swamp contains some nice atmosphere. The movie is certainly one of the better entries in the series and makes for a nice, fast paced entertainment.

Peter Lorre stars as Japanese investigator Mr. Moto in "Mr. Moto in Danger Island," a 1939 release also starring Jean Hersholt, Amanda Duff, Walter Hymer, Douglas Dumbrille, and Leon Ames. Originally written as a Charlie Chan script, Moto is asked to investigate the smuggling of inexpensive contraband diamonds from South America via Puerto Rico and into the U.S. that are driving down diamond prices. One investigator has already been murdered, so it's time to send in the big guns - Moto.

A professional wrestler named Twister McGurk (Hymer), whom Moto meets en route to Puerto Rico, attaches himself to the diminutive detective, which brings some comic relief.

Entertaining with a nice tropical atmosphere despite being made on a back lot, and it's always a joy to see Peter Lorre. Unfortunately for Mr. Moto, World War II ended his run.