Mr. Moto sur le ring

Asian detectives, as far as 20th Century Fox was concerned, are interchangeable, so producers had no trouble turning this Charlie Chan film into a Mr. Moto one. Apparently there was some sort of problem between Fox and the current Chan, Warner Oland, so they did a switch. I know some people state the film was switched because Warner Oland died, but he didn't die until five months after this film was released.

Anyway, Mr. Moto is teaching a class in the science of investigation and who should one of his students be but Lee Chan (Keye Luke). And it's quite a cast: Lynn Bari, Slapsie Maxie Rosenbloom, John Hamilton (Perry White from the TV Superman), Ward Bond, and Lon Chaney Jr.

Moto becomes involved in the death of a prize fighter after he's knocked out in the ring, but it turns out the man was murdered with poison on the opponent's glove.

Peter Lorre is just terrific, and while this isn't the greatest Mr. Moto film ever made, he's wonderful. Unfortunately, after Pearl Harbor, Mr. M kind of disappeared.

Although originally intended as a Chan film maybe not surprisingly it's easy to switch to Moto Mode and enjoy what we've got. Not being a boxing fan is much harder to overcome!

A boxer is murdered mid-fight, under the eyes of the multitude and especially Moto's pair of roving eyes, the job is on to find whodunit and how. Peter Lorre was excellent as usual, even hampered with comedy duo no.2 Chan son Lee and kleptomaniac Knockout Wellington. Favourite bit : where someone shouts "Whoever heard of a crooked cop?" and everyone laughs uproariously - in disbelief! The best thing about this Moto though is the never ending stream of then current Fox background actors appearing, from Doug Fowley, chunky Cliff Clark, George E. Stone – even Lon Chaney Jr down to Paul Fix, Ward Bond, Fred Kelsey – why, everyone at the studio was here except Warner Oland!

A nice series entry [3/8], all well worth watching if you're a fan of the genre like me.

I'd consider this one of the better of Peter Lorre's eight Mr. Moto films, with a good story of ringside gambling and crooks. The mysterious Japanese investigator must unravel what happened when a boxer was killed during a match. This one's got a well rounded cast too, beginning with Keye Luke making an appearance as none other than Charlie Chan's son, who is enrolled in a class which Mr. Moto is teaching. Also featuring Lon Chaney Jr. as a thug, and John Hamilton (Perry White on TV's SUPERMAN), too. Former real-life boxer-turned-actor Maxie Roosenbloom is the dimwitted comic relief. While watching and enjoying this entry I had the feeling that this was not in the same mold as previous Moto films I've seen. It was after the movie ended that I learned why via an informative bonus feature on the DVD -- MR. MOTO'S GAMBLE was originally scripted to be another Warner Oland Charlie Chan film for Fox, but Oland was having problems at the time, so the script was rebooted as a Mr. Moto film, with Peter Lorre practically doing Warner Oland. *** out of ****

Mr. Moto's Gamble finds our Japanese sleuth in the position of teacher and among his pupils is Keye Luke the son of that other Asian detective Charlie Chan. He's Charlie's number one son, but he's Moto's number one pupil and he says he will write a letter to Charlie saying so.

Peter Lorre and Keye Luke are at a prize fight when one of the fighters is knocked out and later dies of a poison delivered in a most unusual manner. There was a lot of syndicate money on this fight and originally the winner was held for manslaughter. However Dick Baldwin is released in time to face champion Ward Bond where there is more villainy afoot.

Maxie Rosenbloom who had given up the ring for a more lucrative career in movies plays a former boxer who is a kleptomaniac and hangs out with Keye Luke during the film. Maxie's taking ways are what ultimately leads to the unmasking of the murderer.

Many players who have done roles in gangster films are in the cast and provide us a load of red herrings as to the murderer. You'll have to see one of the better Mr. Moto features to see who does it.

Mr. Moto (Peter Lorre) investigates a murder during a boxing match, with unwanted help from Charlie's Chan's "Number One Son" Lee (Keye Luke). Most people probably know this, but originally this was intended to be a Charlie Chan film. But when troubled Chan star Warner Oland walked off the set, they reworked the story and turned it into a Moto movie. This explains the appearance of Lee Chan. It also explains why Mr. Moto is less edgy than in his first two films. Here he resemble a more traditional detective like Charlie Chan.

While I love Charlie Chan, Peter Lorre is kind of wasted in this type of role. He's better suited to roles with a little menace to them. Keye Luke is fine but the chemistry and rapport he had with Warner Oland is missing. Also appearing are Harold Huber, Douglas Fowley, and beautiful Lynn Bari -- each no stranger to the Charlie Chan series. In addition, there's Ward Bond, George E. Stone, and Maxie Rosenbloom. Lon Chaney, Jr. has a small part. Given the troubled backstory behind the movie, I'm surprised it turns out as well as it does. But a good cast goes a long way with these old detective movies.