This was slightly worse than "Charlie Chan At The Opera" but way better than "Behind That Curtain". This is mostly enjoyable because it features one of Charlie Chan's kids (the one featured before) trying to directly solve the case on his own. I can't help but thinking I was more aware of this character when I was younger. Now, there is something that could have been done a lot better. Despite the fact that the movie is titled "In Honolulu" it mostly takes place on a cruise ship. It still manages to have interesting characters and a good plot. It reminds me of that awful "Friday The 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan". This was infinitely better as it was not horribly acted and disappointing.I find it odd how one of the characters thinks he sees a ghost which everyone questions. Later, one of the characters claims he has a living brain and numerous others in store, but nobody questions that. The most amusing moments in the film are with the guy and his lion. Yeah, he finds a lion on the ship and they end up becoming friends. It makes little sense, but is very fun. I appreciate the mystery and it is pretty unexpected. ***.

"Charlie Chan in Honolulu" is Sidney Toler's first Charlie Chan, and the difference between him in this and in his last films is very noticeable. Here he is much more lively.As this story unfolds, Charlie's daughter is about to give birth, and while he and his wife are at the hospital, the police call Charlie at home and ask him to go to a ship where someone has been murdered. Aspiring detective Jimmy Chan (Sen Yung, Bonanza's Hop Sing) intercepts the call, and he and #5 son Tommy (Layne Tom Jr. who in real life became a distinguished architect) decide to take on the case. Tommy immediately gets stuck in an area where wild animals are being kept for importation to the zoo; chaos ensues. This takes up some footage at the beginning.Charlie finally arrives and tries to sort out the mess, but there's another murder, and a missing and reappearing $10,000, a mysterious doctor (George Zucco) who pretends to be deaf and has an interesting science experiment on board, a fast-talking detective and his charge -- meanwhile, Charlie keeps getting calls from his son-in-law.They really threw the book at this one, complete with very dramatic music, as Toler's debut. He's delightful.One of the crazier Chan films, but it's nice to see Toler so energetic, and the Chan family is fun.

A fun opening scene: a dinner table crowded with Chans of all sizes. Charlie (Sidney Toler) tries briefly to quiet down his offspring and enforce some manners; they listen politely to his proverb and then go right back to grabbing food and yelling. Lots of family involvement in this Charlie Chan picture, especially in the first half. A Chan daughter is about to deliver a first grandchild, to the excitement of all. Number two son Jimmy (Sen Yung) wants to be a detective and has even made business cards: "I bet I could be the best in the islands," he tells his pop, "with your help." 10-year-old Tommy Chan (the hilarious Layne Tom, Jr.) has the same detecting bug as Jimmy. With Charlie off at the maternity hospital, a case inevitably develops—it's a murder on a ship just arrived in port. Jimmy and Tommy ill-advisedly start the investigation on their own; soon enough, Jimmy nearly gets himself thrown overboard for impersonating an officer. Of course, Charlie arrives on board just in time to rescue him: "Young squirt merely chip masquerading as block."Eventually, the picture does settle down into a nice study of several suspects. The great George Zucco is suspicious-looking Dr. Cardigan; Phyllis Brooks is a woman travelling with $300,000 in cash and is the only witness to the murder; Richard Lane and Marc Lawrence are a cop and prisoner on their way home to the States; Claire Dodd is a mysterious female who may be keeping some secrets; and Robert Barrat is the ship's captain who can't wait to get his cargo back out to sea. Eddie Collins is comic relief as a scaredy-cat animal trainer in charge of a lower hold full of zoo animals.It's a pretty good mystery and throws suspicion back and forth quite well; although I've seen this one before, I couldn't remember who did it and I couldn't guess, either!While this is the first film in the series for both Sidney Toler and Sen Yung, both seem so familiar in their roles that it's hard to evaluate them as newcomers—apparently that's a good indication that both stepped in and became instantly at home. More humor than most Chan pictures, but solid all the way around.

In Charlie Chan in Honolulu, Chan is called out to a freighter with six passengers making its way to Hawaii. A mysterious man has been murdered and $300,000 is missing. Chan must work his way through the clues, red herrings, odd characters, and other assorted obstacles to find a solution. In typical Chan fashion, he gathers all the suspects together to reveal the killer's identity.Charlie Chan in Honolulu marks Sidney Toler's first outing as the venerable detective. The movie may not be spectacular, but it's not a bad way to begin Toler's run in the series. The movie also sees Victor Sen Yung take over for Keye Luke in the role of Chan's main son. H. Bruce Humberstone would appear to have been a solid choice to direct Toler's first Chan. He was familiar with the series having already directed three installments, including the much heralded Charlie Chan at the Opera. Likewise, the supporting characters are also a solid group. George Zucco and Phyllis Brooks give exceptionally noteworthy performances. Eddie Collins provides the comic relief. The biggest weakness of Charlie Chan in Honolulu is the plot. It's just not that interesting. And, in infuriating fashion, Chan's solution to the mystery is a cheat. There's no way for the audience to have figured out the solution based on the clues presented. It takes a last minute piece of evidence to unmask the killer.