This is a low-budget B movie with a mostly unknown cast (other than Billy Gilbert in a small comic relief role). It begins with a man trying to buy a dagger from a man who has agreed to take this to Lee Fong. Although it seems of minor value, the man offers $1000 for it but is refused—after all the other man can't sell something that isn't his. But when he refuses, the guy tries to kill him and take it! Apparently this is SOME dagger! In fact, several more attempts are made on his life but somehow he is able to escape with his life. When the dagger finally is brought to Fong, the reason it's so desired is now apparent. However, at that moment, Fong is killed and the secret is stolen.Of special note is the character of Madam Ling Soo who might just be the worst character played by a Westerner imitating an Asian—and that's saying a lot. It is probably worse than John Wayne's impersonation of Genghis Khan or Katherine Hepburn as a Chinese peasant—mostly because her accent and acting are so utterly bad and ridiculous. Also, while I usually like Gilbert in films, here he plays a person so stupid and one-dimensional that he is a serious detriment to the movie—not that it was a great film to begin with, by the way.Overall, bad acting and a bad script make for a bad picture. This film is in the public domain and I can easily see why no one bothered to renew the copyright!

CHINATOWN AFTER DARK is only one of the many short thrillers with supposedly Chinese atmosphere; the title is much better than the movie itself. Yet the very movie is acceptable, if you enjoy these between—the—wars standard thrillers.A guy is asked to deliver a Chinese dagger to a Chinese oldster; meantime, a gang is trying to get the dagger, a valuable one because inside it it's hidden a precious stone. The guy has a helpful brother.Otherwise, there's no skill, and only a moderately good—looking lady as a Chinese gang boss. The story is very clumsily told.Yet such movies have charm. They are made for a playful disposition.For me all this slapdash is more enchanting that most new TV cop series/ or blockbusters, for that matter.

This is just another one of the incompetently acted and written C-grade films put out by gone-and-forgotten Action Pictures (one of many early-sound era independent feature film companies that came and went by the mid-thirties). At least there are a few Chinese actors and extras used to add ethnic authenticity, but you still have the woefully inept Carmel Myers as Madame Ying Su and Barbara Kent as Lotus. Billy Gilbert is the comedy relief as a flustered cop named Dooley. He's also the only decent actor in the bunch; the rest fumbling with their dialogue, including hero Rex Lease. It's all in an effort to tell the cliché story of the murderous desire for an oriental dagger that contains a valuable ring inside it. Rex Lease jumps into the case to help out his brother. Gilbert is cop hot on Lease's trail, thinking he's a killer. Most of Gilbert's "comedy" is sneezing loudly whenever he's in contact with a flower. Like Gilbert's allergy, this dull thriller should be kept out of contact from viewers.

Detective Dooley (Billy Gilbert) explaining police procedure to Lotus (Barbra Kent): Dooley: When I get enough evidence on him I'll send him to the pen.Lotus: What pen?Dooley: Well it ain't the fountain pen!That's an example of the comedy relief in this movie and we could have gotten along very well if they had just stuck to the mystery and forgotten the . . . um . . . humour.Chinatown had been a source of mystery and imagination from silent movie days. To hear filmmakers tell it there was danger in every restaurant and a murderer lurking in every dark alley. This thriller from 1931 is no exception. The hero Jim Barton (Rex Lease, taking a break from westerns) is trying to locate his missing brother Ralph. Said brother was supposed to deliver an antique dagger which has a priceless jewel in the hilt to a certain Mr. Lee Fong. Just before delivering the dagger a mysterious hand fires a shot in the dark and when the lights come on Lee Fong is dead and Ralph and the dagger have vanished! Now Jim must find his brother and the dagger, not necessarily in that order. Detective Dooley, who is very tough but so dumb he could not find a bucket of sand at the beach, is certain Jim is the killer so Jim must dodge both the police and Madame Ying Su (Carmel Myers) to solve the mystery.Despite the low budget and the fact that "Chinatown" is an obvious backlot this is a well constructed picture. Jules Cronjager is a competent cameraman who makes very good use of the shadows. Director Stuart Paton does his job very well also. The lead Chinese characters are played by Caucasian actors in makeup but the "background" roles are handled by actual Chinese actors. If you like this film, and I suspect you will, you might also want to check out CAPTURED IN CHINATOWN (1933) and CHINATOWN NIGHTS (1929).