The Age of Commercialism

Memorable, crazy movie

It is not deep, but it is fun to watch. It does have a bit more of an edge to it than other similar films.

Unshakable, witty and deeply felt, the film will be paying emotional dividends for a long, long time.

An experimental, top secret plane is hijacked and the pilot murdered. When the plane is found, someone has stolen the new remote control device the plane was carrying. Foreign powers would pay a fortune for such a device. Charlie Chan is on the case and tracks the crooks from Honolulu to a ship carrying Olympic athletes to the games in Berlin. Maybe not the absolute best, but Charlie Chan at the Olympics is a fun addition to the series. I'll keep this to a couple of things that stand out to me. First, the movie looks like a million bucks. The Fox B unit made some fine looking films. Cinematography, lighting, sets, and set design are all quite good. And here, they combined newsreel footage from the Berlin Olympics with scenes they shot in as seamless a way I've seen in a movie from the 30s. It's very well done. Next, The acting in Charlie Chan at the Olympics is fantastic. I really enjoy the all too brief scenes Warner Oland and Keye Luke have together in this movie. Just a pleasure to watch. And I get a kick out of the scenes with Johnathan Hale and John Eldridge. Surely, no on actually talks like that. They sound like they're in a race to see who can spit out lines the fastest. I love it.If I have one negative to say about Charlie Chan at the Olympics it's that the movie is more spy/adventure than murder/mystery. Whether it's Chan, Sherlock Holmes, or Hercules Poirot, I prefer the plots that revolve around a murder more than those that get all tied up in a wartime distractions. I love those scenes where the great detective gathers all the suspects together before making the final reveal. I know this is a matter of personal opinion and taste, but I do rate this movie lower because, for me, the entertainment value isn't as great.

An experimental plane's guidance system is stolen and Charlie Chan's on the case. He follows the clues to Berlin, where the 1936 Olympic Games are being held. Amusingly, "Number One Son" Lee Chan is a member of the U.S. Olympic Swim Team. He even wins! As usual, Warner Oland is a perfect Charlie Chan. In addition to Keye Luke's Lee, this time we get Charlie Chan, Jr. He's played by Layne Tom, Jr. and is all kinds of adorable. I wonder why he wasn't made a permanent part of the series because he's a lot of fun. Also includes one of the loveliest actresses to appear in the entire Chan series, Katherine DeMille. Hubba-hubba! She was the adopted daughter of Cecil B. DeMille and future wife of Anthony Quinn. There's also some nice support from reliable character actors C. Henry Gordon, John Eldredge, and Jonathan Hale. Good cast in this one.This entry in the series is most notable for it taking place during the 1936 Olympics, with footage from the games including Jesse Owens. Plus Charlie travels to Berlin on the Hindenburg. It also features pre-WWII German police portrayed in a much more sympathetic light than they would be just a few years later. Although, it should be noted Inspector Strasser (Frederik Vogeding) of the German police is kind of a boob ("Things like this cannot happen in Berlin!"). An excellent entry in the Charlie Chan series with high entertainment value and some added historical curiosity. Fans should love it.

The film begins with a test involving a radio control for airplanes. However, despite beginning well, the plane unexpectedly flies off course and when the plane is later discovered, the radio device is missing. At the same time, Lee Chan is on the way to Germany for the 1936 Olympics and it looks as if the thieves are headed that way as well, so it's up to Charlie to give chase.When I was a kid, I watched Charlie Chan movies all the time but I can't recall ever having seen CHARLIE CHAN AT THE OLYMPICS. This isn't likely due to a memory loss on my part but because the film seems to glorify, to a degree, the Nazis. No, this does NOT mean that Charlie meets his good friend Hitler in the film (Hitler, fortunately, is never mentioned). However, considering that not long after this the Nazis started on global conquest, I could understand it being removed from circulation. In the 60s and 70s, broadcasters were still a tad worried about showing this film due to its being set mostly in Berlin and because, believe it or not, the Nazis help Chan solve a mystery and return a stolen aviation secret to America! Now had the Nazis been behind the murder and theft, then it might have seemed more watchable in later years---but instead the Nazi police are thanked by Chan for their help and there is no mention of the evil of the regime they serve.Now I am not the most politically correct person out there and I am a history teacher, so I was thrilled when I discovered that Fox recently released this film on DVD. That's because in addition to being one of the best Chan mysteries (though, I must admit the plot was a bit confusing), it featured the Hindenburg and clips of the Olympics in the film (including Jesse Owens leading the US team to victory in a relay). It was also really weird seeing Lee Chan (#1 Son) on the Olympic team and racing to victory in the 100 meter freestyle. In addition to these exciting clips, the film also featured two of the very best Chan children as sidekicks. In the first third of the film, we are introduced to #3 son (Layne Tom) and he is simply a joy to watch--he's so cute and entertaining. Then later, Lee (Keye Luke) is on hand to provide lots of entertainment and action. These elements all made for a very fascinating and unusual film--one that can't help but be fascinating to anyone with an appreciation for history.By the way, the DVD also includes an extra featurette, TOM LAYNE, JR.: THE ADVENTURES OF CHARLIE CHAN, JR. and its well worth a look. There's lot of nice insight and materials that will please most die-hard fans like myself.

One of the best of the 1930s Chan films. It is remarkable how all reference to the Nazis was expunged from the scenes of the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. The Police are represented as Kaiser-style people rather than members of the Gestapo. I was more familiar with Sidney Toler, but I can see that Oland was a superior actor and much of the slapstick of the later Chans was omitted in the earlier versions. All in all, a well-done effort. The plot really doesn't concern the Olympics aside from being used as a backdrop for the action, but this isn't a problem. There is the usual complement of Chan aphorisms. The early Chan films are also interesting commentaries on the state of technology in the 1930s. Getting across the US by plane is said to take 13 hours, as Charlie races a boat from Honolulu to Germany.