I don't need to detail the plot of this 82-year-old film with 30 other reviews already available here.I just saw this again. I remember thinking as a teen that this was the "scariest" of the Chan series and I believe it is primarily because Charlie was kidnapped, held prisoner, and later led into the den of smugglers where he certainly could have been killed in two different locations. In most Chan films, he rarely faces any danger other than someone taking a shot at him and running away, having missed. His fatherly relationship with son, Lee, was never warmer. Lee was not the bungler he and brothers were in later films. He was comical, but didn't hinder Charlie's work, and was quite helpful, quite possibly saving his life even. I loved the scene at the banquet early on where after a speaker spoke in Chinese for about 3 minutes, someone asked Lee what he said, and the response was "He said, 'Thank you, so much.'" Charlie gets to sing a song to some children early in the film, and he does the usual wise old sayings. The mystery was pretty good, as we had a few occasions where we were led to believe someone was a "bad guy" then saw the opposite, then...There was a cool scene where Charlie demonstrated how someone could have snuck out of a room, leaving behind a locked window.Very good entry in the series.

This is a nice clean mystery. Charlie is in Shanghai to receive some sort of honor. After a couple testimonials, a dear friend of his opens a box. In it is a revolver that goes off and kills him. Charlie has, himself, received a threat to his life. He suspects an attack and evades death when he puts some pillows in his bed which are attacked by the would be killer. Another development is the appearance of his son played by Keye Luke. The son is quite protective of his father. He is also carrying on a relationship with a young woman over the phone, causing consternation to his father who needs to stay in contact with the police. It turns out a couple is at the center of all this and are trying to isolate the two Chans in order to kill them. As is usually the case, Charlie has the ability to see things others don't. From watching the Chan movies in order, I would recommend not opening boxes if you can help it.

This time, Charlie Chan pays a visit to China, the home of his honorable ancestors - and lands, of course, in Shanghai, the biggest and most infamous (and most dangerous) port in the world, an Eldorado for crimes of all kind, and especially for opium-smuggling...The officials give a big banquet in Charlie's honor - where his old friend and colleague Sir Stanley Woodland, who'd been after the smuggling ring, is murdered in front of everybody's eyes. From that point on the story becomes more and more complicated, the suspects more and more, until even the most seemingly honest man - and woman - isn't above suspicion anymore...Charlie's son Lee once again - when he's not busy flirting with girls on the telephone - gives his father VERY valuable assistance, until the whole intricate puzzle is solved in a shady shack on the waterfront...Magnificently acted and photographed, with lots of moments of great suspense - and of great surprise, when it comes to revealing the identities of the 'heads' behind this big smuggling ring... An absolute 'must' for fans of classic crime in general, and of course of Charlie Chan in particular!

CHARLIE CHAN IN SHANGHAI (1935) This is a decent if unremarkable Warner Oland Chan entry, though there are some good moments teaming up with Keye Luke as his Number One son. Here, the father and son team are in their native China where Charlie is being honored at a dinner. Things take a morbid turn when a good friend of Chan's gets killed while making a speech, and it may or may not be intentional. The detective then becomes a target as he investigates an opium smuggling ring.**1/2 out of four