Pauline Moore comes to Reno staying in a hotel specializing in divorces owned by Kay Linaker in which Phyllis Brooks is the social director. Pauline is divorcing husband Kane Richmond, who is engaged to be married to Louise Henry. While at the hotel lounge, Henry is escorted by Ricardo Cortez to Moore's table to rub her nose in the fact that she is marrying her husband. Robert Lowery, also present during the confrontation, is stunned that Henry is engaged since he thought that Henry was his girl. Brooks is jealous that Cortez is escorting Henry since she has a thing for him! Later that evening Moore is found in Henry's room standing over Henry's dead body. Charlie is enlisted by Richmond to fly with him to Reno to clear his wife of the murder. It's hard to believe but the plot gets even more complex and convoluted the more the movie goes on! Sen Yung falls for Iris Wong, in the role of Henry's maid, and the two of them hinder more than help the investigation. Aside from the aforementioned actors and actresses who were marvelous, Slim Summerville is wonderful as the local sheriff who is always several steps behind Chan in the investigation. Charles D. Brown as the Chief of Police and Sidney Toler keep a lid on the insanity and were very good also. The ending will remind you of a Thin Man finale. Very enjoyable entry in the series.

Run-of-the-mill murder mystery. Mary Whitman(Pauline Moore)arrives in Reno, Nevada for a six-week divorce. She finds herself arrested accused of murdering another divorce-seeker staying at her hotel. Circumstancial evidence seems to be damning, but family friend Charlie Chan(Sidney Toler) the Honolulu detective is summoned to seek the truth. Charlie's number-two-son Jimmy(Sen Yung)is on hand with intent to help his dad and is about as useful as the dim-witted local sheriff(Slim Summerville). The Police Chief(Charles D. Brown)is more than happy to have Chan on the case, because the crime quickly becomes complex. Cab driver Eddie Collins provides some humor. Other players: Ricardo Cortez, Phyllis Brooks, Kay Linaker and Kane Richmond.

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.

This was a great movie with mystery and little comedy sprinkled in!!! Slim Summerville was great as Tombxtone and if you are a real movie buff you will know that the end theme was the same music that was used for the Crackly Grain Flakes song from Rebecca of Sunnybrook farms in which Mr Summerville and Phyllis Brooks both starred with Shirley Temple. Whan Charlie saw Jimmy in the police line up, his facial expressions were like he was seeing a mirage but it was a great second and third take that only Sidney Toler could deliver. I would definitely add this to any Charlie Chan collection or just if you like old movies period!!!