Reviews (2)

another great Wong movie
Mr Wong was always a fave of mine. Karloff played him and so did Keye Luke. It's so nice to see this movie in print and at a good price! Thanks Alpha!

Mr. Wong saves the Eye of the Daughter of the Moon
"The Mystery of Mr. Wong" is the second in the series featuring Boris Karloff as the Chinese detective. This time around gem collector Brandon Edwards (Morgan Wallace) has acquired the "Eye of the Daughter of the Moon," the largest star sapphire in the world. Unfortunately, the gem has been stolen from China. While exhibiting the gem during a party at his home, Edwards tells Mr. Wong he is worried and the next thing we know Edwards is shot during a game of charades. The gem disappears, taken by Drina (Lotus Long) the maid, who intends to return it to its sacred resting place in China. But then Drina is murdered as well. This 1939 film, directed by William Nigh and based on the stories of Hugh Wiley, is a pretty good murder mystery until a key clue pretty much gives it all away. Nice to see Karloff playing the good guy for once, even if once again he is buried under a lot of makeup. ... Read more

Reviews (8)

The Best Mr. Wong
This is a terrific DVD for the atmosphere, the clever Mr. Wong and the great transfer. This is a B picture, to be sure, shot on a budget, but its great fun as Mr. Wong solves his case. The transfer is very good considering there is no restoration. The sound is very good as well. I love this series and Boris is the man to play the character. This is probably the best of the Mr. Wong series with Boris.

I enjoyed this
This Mr Wong film really drew me in. I found it most entertaining. Mr Wong is something of an obscure movie detective, but it's great that he is once again available to entertain viewers. All six Mr Wong movies are now on DVD!

a true treasure for Mr Wong fans
You wont find a more complete set of DVDs if you are a fan of Mr Wong. All six Wong films are here: Mr Wong Detective, Mystery of Mr Wong, Mr Wong In Chinatown, The Fatal Hour, Doomed To Die, and Phantom of Chinatown. Phantom of Chinatown is one of the most interesting in the series and stars Keye Luke as an earlier and younger Mr Wong. These movies have captivated me since I was just a wee lad and I was thrilled to discover this DVD set. It is the most complete one available and a true must for Mr Wong fans.

Good Prints, But a Forgettable Series
When Monogram recruited Boris Karloff for its "Mr. Wong" series in 1938, the studio apparently believed that the horror icon's presence would be strong enough to carry its low-budget product. They were sadly mistaken and the series folded in 1940 after six films, with Karloff appearing in only five of them. (Interestingly, Keye Luke played a younger version of the Chinese detective in the final installment.) Time has not been kind to the "Mr. Wong" series. These mysteries are deadly dull and have virtually nothing to offer except the sincerity of Karloff's performances. On the plus side, these are the best prints you are likely to find. Still, Karloff's association with Monogram was less distinguished than Bela Lugosi's run during the early 1940s. Even Bela's "Mysterious Mr. Wong" (no relation) is more entertaining than the dreary exploits of James Lee Wong.

A Fairly Good Detective Film
In MR. WONG, DETECTIVE James Lee Wong is hired by the owner of a chemical manufacturing firm who is accused of stealing a secret formula. The owner and two of his associates are promptly murdered leaving Mr. Wong with three homicides to solve.

William Nigh is the director of this movie which is the first of six entries in the series. Boris Karloff has the starring role of Mr. Wong. The rather small supporting cast includes Grant Withers, Maxine Jennings, Evelyn Brent, Frank Bruno, Lucien Prival and Lee Tong Foo. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Another "Wong" Winner!
This is a terrific DVD for the atmosphere, the clever Mr. Wong, This is a B picture, to be sure, shot on a budget, but its great fun as Mr. Wong solves his case. The transfer is very good considering there is no restoration. The sound is very good as well. I love this series and Boris is the man to play the character.

Mr. Wong solves the murder of a shipping magnate
Boris Karloff does his fifth film as Mr. Wong, the Chinese detective in this 1940 film directed by William Nigh. Shipping magnate Cyrus Wentworth (Melvin Lang) is mysteriously murdered after one of his ships is sunk with over $1 million in bonds. Captain Street (Grant Withers) arrests Dick Fleming (William Sterling), the son of the dead man's rival since he was the last person to see Wentworth alive. But reporter Bobby Logan (Marjorie Reynolds) believes Dick is innocent and brings Mr. Wong into the case. This is one of the lesser films in the series. The mystery is rather obvious and the only real fun in the film is Mr. Wong having to deal with Bobby, who keeps trying in vain to outwit the ace detective. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Not Bela's Best!
We are told in the prologue that Confucius, on his death-bed, handed out 12 coins to twelve friends. Apparently, if any one man gets a hold of all of these coins together, he will be the supreme ruler of the Chinese province of Keelat. Bela Lugosi plays plays Fu Wong, a sinister Chinaman with a heavy Hungarian accent, who will stop at nothing to get his hands on the coins. Wallace Ford is a wise-cracking reporter on his trail of murder and torture. It all boils down to a crock of creaky,B-grade nonsense. Really! If you like this sort of thing, the cheap Alpha DVD has a reasonable VHS quality picture on it but the sound is a bit woolly and gets worse towards the end. I lost interest about half-way through but if it's your bag.... Go for it!

One of the Best of the "Bad" films.
This is one of the best of the cheap "Chinatown" mysteries. A real classic. The more you watch it, the more it grows on you.
DVD picture quality is pretty good, the sound is OK, but what can your expect from Monogram pictures. Buy it!

Bela Lugosi is the wrong Mr. Wong
I halfway enjoyed the series of Mr. Wong Chinese detective films made starring Boris Karloff, so when I stumbled on this film, boy, was I surprised. Especially since this 1935 film, which is only an hour-long, is directed by William Nigh, the same director as Karloff's Mr. Wong films. Go figure. Anyhow, the story is certainly interesting as the title character is a mysterious figure who stops at nothing to obtain the twelve coins of Confucius, which have all managed to end up in New York City's Chinatown. But I just cannot get past the idea of Bela Lugosi playing a Chinese villain replete with Hungarian accent. Still, the man does know what to do with instruments of torture. Certainly worth a look and if it inspires you to check out the "other" Mr. Wong, so much the better.

The OTHER Mr. Wong
The last film I ever expected to be re-released on DVD, yet it's enjoyable. For those of us who have seen Bela Lugosi as a bad guy (in most of his films) and a good guy (in a few others) here's your chance to see him in a dual role. One, an obsessed mandarin trying to acquire coins which will give him power. The other, a knowledgable collector who hopes for his (the bad guy's downfall). Not a 5 star film but good. I also recommend the Boris Karloff Mr. Wong set.

Classic Lugosi
"Mysterious Mr. Wong" (1935) is great fun for Bela Lugosi fans. It's a low-budget melodrama with Bela making the most of his footage in the title role. He is properly sinister throughout. Unlike other public-domain Lugosi titles, the video's print quality is quite good. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Lugosi Rises Above Another Abysmal Movie
"Black Dragons" is a film that, as most Bela Lugosi fans know, was made for Sam Katzman and his Banner Productions, and then released by Monogram Pictures. So forget about plot; plot in a Katzman flick is only incidental to the shoddy sets, direction, and acting. The truth be told, this is one of those pictures that, if it didn't have a Lugosi, would not have been made.

OK, here's the plot . . . and don't ask me to repeat it: Seems a group of prominent American businessmen are being slain. We also know that it is Lusosi doing the slaying, because it's revealed very early on in the film as to what he's up to. Now, here's the twist. The American businessmen are really Japanese, having been trtansformed by none other than Dr. Lugosi, in this picture a Nazi Evil Scientist (Boo!) and sent here as a fifth column.

It immediately strikes our sense of logic that it would be far easier just to send over a geoup of Germans or Italians than go to all the trouble of changing a person's race. But this is a Katzman flick, so logic is the first thing a viewer leaves behind when entering. Of course Lugosi is caught (by a pre-Lone Ranger Clayton Moore), thus getting his at the end. It is amazing to me that no matter how ridiculous the plot, Lugosi remains solidly professional rather than go down the chute with the movie. One reason why I become angry when someone tries to tell me that he was a bad actor.

If this picture were set in today's age, Lugosi would do quite well as a dream-come true to Michael Jackson and Joan Rivers, among others.

The quality of the film is dark and murky - apparently no effort was made to clean things up, but you can't go wrong for the price, especially if you are a fan of the genre or Lugosi. Perhaps the film will resurface in Bela Junior's restored series of his father's films. I certainly hope so.

For Lugosi fans only... and only if it's on TV
Do not waste your money on this movie. I like Bela Lugosi, but so far, I have only seen about twelve of his movies. However, this is probably the worst of those. Lugosi is good, as usual. Some of the other actors are decent and some are not so good. The weakest part of the movie is the story. It's not interesting or thrilling (it's supposed to be a horror-thriller). It's just boring.

Don't waste your money on this. If you're a Lugosi fan, watch it if it's ever on TV. "Invisible Ghost" and "Devil Bat" are better

Colorized Black Dragons.
No movie with Bela Lugosi in it can be a total bore, but this one comes too close. It deals with a Nazi doctor performing surgery on Japanese spies to make them pass as Americans. This is done to ease their schemes at sabotaging our war effort. It is a cheap movie, a slow movie, but would not even suffer too much for these flaws if it did not also rely on a long and awkward flashback sequence near the end, snuffing out what suspense had been built. The quality of the tape is not bad, but either you like colorized movies or you don't. This reviewer does not. Die-hard Lugosi fans (are there any other kind?) may want to purchase Black Dragons, but others will find it too ... ehh. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

A Haunting Mr. Wong!
This is a terrific DVD for the atmosphere, the clever Mr. Wong and the great transfer. This is a B picture, to be sure, shot on a budget, but its great fun as Mr. Wong solves his case. The transfer is very good considering there is no restoration. The sound is very good as well. I love this series and Boris is the man to play the character.

loved it
I have found these Mr Wong movies very addictive! I'm glad Alpha has made these available! Mr Wong In Chinatown isn't the best mystery in the series, but it is still one of my favorites of the series. This one is a little stranger that other entries. Very unusual!

Mr. Wong searches for the murderer of Princess Lin Hwa
This film is third of Boris Karloff's turns as the Chinese detective James Lee Wong. Princess Lin Hwa (Lotus Long) visits Mr. Wong for help and is killed by a poisoned arrow. This time Mr. Wong is joined not only by Captain Street (Grant Withers) but the policeman's fiance, reporter Bobby Logan (Marjorie Reynolds). When the trio check out the apartment of the princess they find her maid murdered and the only witness a mute dwarf (Angelo Rosita) who suddenly disappears. This is a below average mystery which gives Karloff very little to do besides maintain his unruffled demeanor. The last reel picks up a bit as Mr. Wong falls into the hands of the murderer and has to be rescued by his companions. Like the other films in this series, this 1939 film was directed by William Nigh and based on the stories of Hugh Wiley. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Lugosi Rises Above Another Abysmal Movie
"Black Dragons" is a film that, as most Bela Lugosi fans know, was made for Sam Katzman and his Banner Productions, and then released by Monogram Pictures. So forget about plot; plot in a Katzman flick is only incidental to the shoddy sets, direction, and acting. The truth be told, this is one of those pictures that, if it didn't have a Lugosi, would not have been made.

OK, here's the plot . . . and don't ask me to repeat it: Seems a group of prominent American businessmen are being slain. We also know that it is Lusosi doing the slaying, because it's revealed very early on in the film as to what he's up to. Now, here's the twist. The American businessmen are really Japanese, having been trtansformed by none other than Dr. Lugosi, in this picture a Nazi Evil Scientist (Boo!) and sent here as a fifth column.

It immediately strikes our sense of logic that it would be far easier just to send over a geoup of Germans or Italians than go to all the trouble of changing a person's race. But this is a Katzman flick, so logic is the first thing a viewer leaves behind when entering. Of course Lugosi is caught (by a pre-Lone Ranger Clayton Moore), thus getting his at the end. It is amazing to me that no matter how ridiculous the plot, Lugosi remains solidly professional rather than go down the chute with the movie. One reason why I become angry when someone tries to tell me that he was a bad actor.

If this picture were set in today's age, Lugosi would do quite well as a dream-come true to Michael Jackson and Joan Rivers, among others.

The quality of the film is dark and murky - apparently no effort was made to clean things up, but you can't go wrong for the price, especially if you are a fan of the genre or Lugosi. Perhaps the film will resurface in Bela Junior's restored series of his father's films. I certainly hope so.

For Lugosi fans only... and only if it's on TV
Do not waste your money on this movie. I like Bela Lugosi, but so far, I have only seen about twelve of his movies. However, this is probably the worst of those. Lugosi is good, as usual. Some of the other actors are decent and some are not so good. The weakest part of the movie is the story. It's not interesting or thrilling (it's supposed to be a horror-thriller). It's just boring.

Don't waste your money on this. If you're a Lugosi fan, watch it if it's ever on TV. "Invisible Ghost" and "Devil Bat" are better

Colorized Black Dragons.
No movie with Bela Lugosi in it can be a total bore, but this one comes too close. It deals with a Nazi doctor performing surgery on Japanese spies to make them pass as Americans. This is done to ease their schemes at sabotaging our war effort. It is a cheap movie, a slow movie, but would not even suffer too much for these flaws if it did not also rely on a long and awkward flashback sequence near the end, snuffing out what suspense had been built. The quality of the tape is not bad, but either you like colorized movies or you don't. This reviewer does not. Die-hard Lugosi fans (are there any other kind?) may want to purchase Black Dragons, but others will find it too ... ehh. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Not Bela's Best!
We are told in the prologue that Confucius, on his death-bed, handed out 12 coins to twelve friends. Apparently, if any one man gets a hold of all of these coins together, he will be the supreme ruler of the Chinese province of Keelat. Bela Lugosi plays plays Fu Wong, a sinister Chinaman with a heavy Hungarian accent, who will stop at nothing to get his hands on the coins. Wallace Ford is a wise-cracking reporter on his trail of murder and torture. It all boils down to a crock of creaky,B-grade nonsense. Really! If you like this sort of thing, the cheap Alpha DVD has a reasonable VHS quality picture on it but the sound is a bit woolly and gets worse towards the end. I lost interest about half-way through but if it's your bag.... Go for it!

One of the Best of the "Bad" films.
This is one of the best of the cheap "Chinatown" mysteries. A real classic. The more you watch it, the more it grows on you.
DVD picture quality is pretty good, the sound is OK, but what can your expect from Monogram pictures. Buy it!

Bela Lugosi is the wrong Mr. Wong
I halfway enjoyed the series of Mr. Wong Chinese detective films made starring Boris Karloff, so when I stumbled on this film, boy, was I surprised. Especially since this 1935 film, which is only an hour-long, is directed by William Nigh, the same director as Karloff's Mr. Wong films. Go figure. Anyhow, the story is certainly interesting as the title character is a mysterious figure who stops at nothing to obtain the twelve coins of Confucius, which have all managed to end up in New York City's Chinatown. But I just cannot get past the idea of Bela Lugosi playing a Chinese villain replete with Hungarian accent. Still, the man does know what to do with instruments of torture. Certainly worth a look and if it inspires you to check out the "other" Mr. Wong, so much the better.

The OTHER Mr. Wong
The last film I ever expected to be re-released on DVD, yet it's enjoyable. For those of us who have seen Bela Lugosi as a bad guy (in most of his films) and a good guy (in a few others) here's your chance to see him in a dual role. One, an obsessed mandarin trying to acquire coins which will give him power. The other, a knowledgable collector who hopes for his (the bad guy's downfall). Not a 5 star film but good. I also recommend the Boris Karloff Mr. Wong set.

Classic Lugosi
"Mysterious Mr. Wong" (1935) is great fun for Bela Lugosi fans. It's a low-budget melodrama with Bela making the most of his footage in the title role. He is properly sinister throughout. Unlike other public-domain Lugosi titles, the video's print quality is quite good. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Lugosi Rises Above Another Abysmal Movie
"Black Dragons" is a film that, as most Bela Lugosi fans know, was made for Sam Katzman and his Banner Productions, and then released by Monogram Pictures. So forget about plot; plot in a Katzman flick is only incidental to the shoddy sets, direction, and acting. The truth be told, this is one of those pictures that, if it didn't have a Lugosi, would not have been made.

OK, here's the plot . . . and don't ask me to repeat it: Seems a group of prominent American businessmen are being slain. We also know that it is Lusosi doing the slaying, because it's revealed very early on in the film as to what he's up to. Now, here's the twist. The American businessmen are really Japanese, having been trtansformed by none other than Dr. Lugosi, in this picture a Nazi Evil Scientist (Boo!) and sent here as a fifth column.

It immediately strikes our sense of logic that it would be far easier just to send over a geoup of Germans or Italians than go to all the trouble of changing a person's race. But this is a Katzman flick, so logic is the first thing a viewer leaves behind when entering. Of course Lugosi is caught (by a pre-Lone Ranger Clayton Moore), thus getting his at the end. It is amazing to me that no matter how ridiculous the plot, Lugosi remains solidly professional rather than go down the chute with the movie. One reason why I become angry when someone tries to tell me that he was a bad actor.

If this picture were set in today's age, Lugosi would do quite well as a dream-come true to Michael Jackson and Joan Rivers, among others.

The quality of the film is dark and murky - apparently no effort was made to clean things up, but you can't go wrong for the price, especially if you are a fan of the genre or Lugosi. Perhaps the film will resurface in Bela Junior's restored series of his father's films. I certainly hope so.

For Lugosi fans only... and only if it's on TV
Do not waste your money on this movie. I like Bela Lugosi, but so far, I have only seen about twelve of his movies. However, this is probably the worst of those. Lugosi is good, as usual. Some of the other actors are decent and some are not so good. The weakest part of the movie is the story. It's not interesting or thrilling (it's supposed to be a horror-thriller). It's just boring.

Don't waste your money on this. If you're a Lugosi fan, watch it if it's ever on TV. "Invisible Ghost" and "Devil Bat" are better

Colorized Black Dragons.
No movie with Bela Lugosi in it can be a total bore, but this one comes too close. It deals with a Nazi doctor performing surgery on Japanese spies to make them pass as Americans. This is done to ease their schemes at sabotaging our war effort. It is a cheap movie, a slow movie, but would not even suffer too much for these flaws if it did not also rely on a long and awkward flashback sequence near the end, snuffing out what suspense had been built. The quality of the tape is not bad, but either you like colorized movies or you don't. This reviewer does not. Die-hard Lugosi fans (are there any other kind?) may want to purchase Black Dragons, but others will find it too ... ehh. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

East Side Kids back in reform school. Gabe Dell joins cast.
Now that the East Side Kids (Leo Gorcey, Bobby Jordan, Huntz Hall, Sammy Morrison) are done chasing spooks (SPOOKS RUN WILD [1941]), they get silly talking to mannequins. Someone escapes from prison on Blackwell's Island, so the boys go to investigate at the dock on West St. The police think the prisoner has drowned, but has not. By stealing a truck they helped the convict. The kids end up in reform school (again). Danny's (Bobby Jordan) brother, Bill, is wrongfully accused of murder. The real murderer is the same convict that got the boys in reform school. Within two days, the kids must break-out of reform school to save the life of Danny's brother before he is executed. Ann Doran is in this one and Bobby Stone too. Gabriel Dell who was over with Billy Halop, Huntz Hall and Bernard Punsly helping the Little Tough Guys joins the East Side Kids films too. The next film in the series: LET'S GET TOUGH! (1942).

Mr. Wise Guy
This is another DVD distributed by Alpha Video.Unfortunately the transfer to Dvd is horrible, I dont Know where they get their source material, but this Dvd is as bad as their other Bowery boy Dvds.Save your money, I wish I had.

One of Leo Gorcey's best
This is one of the best East Side Kids films available. Before they became "The Bowery Boys" and after they were known as "The Dead End Kids", "Little Tough Guys" and "Junior G-Men", there was a slew of "East Side Kids" films. A lot of these films are heavy on dramatics, not so much comedy as in the later Bowery Boys films. But this film combines both extremely well. Gorcey is, of course, classic in his role of Muggs McGinnis, along with the superb Huntz Hall as Glimpy, David Gorcey, Sunshine Sammy Morrison (uncredited for some reason!), Bobby Jordan, Gabe Dell and a comic performance by legendary Hal Roach regular Billy Gilbert as an inept crook. The film quality is actually much better than others in the East Side Kids series, not many glitches at all and the film is somewhat crisper. Lotsa fun as the kids get put in reform school for a crime they didn't commit; then they attempt to find the real bad guys and get Bobby Jordan's brother off Death Row. If you're a Bowery Boys/East Side Kids fan, you'll heartily enjoy this fine forgotten film. ... Read more

Reviews (8)

The Best Mr. Wong
This is a terrific DVD for the atmosphere, the clever Mr. Wong and the great transfer. This is a B picture, to be sure, shot on a budget, but its great fun as Mr. Wong solves his case. The transfer is very good considering there is no restoration. The sound is very good as well. I love this series and Boris is the man to play the character. This is probably the best of the Mr. Wong series with Boris.

I enjoyed this
This Mr Wong film really drew me in. I found it most entertaining. Mr Wong is something of an obscure movie detective, but it's great that he is once again available to entertain viewers. All six Mr Wong movies are now on DVD!

a true treasure for Mr Wong fans
You wont find a more complete set of DVDs if you are a fan of Mr Wong. All six Wong films are here: Mr Wong Detective, Mystery of Mr Wong, Mr Wong In Chinatown, The Fatal Hour, Doomed To Die, and Phantom of Chinatown. Phantom of Chinatown is one of the most interesting in the series and stars Keye Luke as an earlier and younger Mr Wong. These movies have captivated me since I was just a wee lad and I was thrilled to discover this DVD set. It is the most complete one available and a true must for Mr Wong fans.

Good Prints, But a Forgettable Series
When Monogram recruited Boris Karloff for its "Mr. Wong" series in 1938, the studio apparently believed that the horror icon's presence would be strong enough to carry its low-budget product. They were sadly mistaken and the series folded in 1940 after six films, with Karloff appearing in only five of them. (Interestingly, Keye Luke played a younger version of the Chinese detective in the final installment.) Time has not been kind to the "Mr. Wong" series. These mysteries are deadly dull and have virtually nothing to offer except the sincerity of Karloff's performances. On the plus side, these are the best prints you are likely to find. Still, Karloff's association with Monogram was less distinguished than Bela Lugosi's run during the early 1940s. Even Bela's "Mysterious Mr. Wong" (no relation) is more entertaining than the dreary exploits of James Lee Wong.

A Fairly Good Detective Film
In MR. WONG, DETECTIVE James Lee Wong is hired by the owner of a chemical manufacturing firm who is accused of stealing a secret formula. The owner and two of his associates are promptly murdered leaving Mr. Wong with three homicides to solve.

William Nigh is the director of this movie which is the first of six entries in the series. Boris Karloff has the starring role of Mr. Wong. The rather small supporting cast includes Grant Withers, Maxine Jennings, Evelyn Brent, Frank Bruno, Lucien Prival and Lee Tong Foo. ... Read more