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The Black Camel

Play trailer Poster for The Black Camel 1931 1h 11m Mystery & Thriller Play Trailer Watchlist
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Sleuth Charlie Chan (Warner Oland) asks a fortuneteller (Bela Lugosi) and others about a starlet slain in Hawaii.

Critics Reviews

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Ken Hanke Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC) For those familiar with the later Charlie Chan movies, The Black Camel is revelatory. For anyone else, it's a great introduction to the series. Rated: 4.5/5 Nov 1, 2011 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Patric N A good and interesting movie that works well to introduce people to Chalie Chan who is a very funny and loving, if a bit sterotypical, Chinese man trying to solve a 3 year old murder. But his energetic, goofy and dumb side-kick Kashimo is a bit annoying. Thankfully they never reused teh character. Bela Lugosi does a great job as a mysterious man who uses the power of observation and deduction to be a Fortune Teller. Definitely worth watching. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 08/21/25 Full Review Ted B 3.0 stars; One of the earliest Charlie Chan movies with Warner Oland (1931). The movie was shot in Honolulu, and the scenery provided an interesting backdrop. The plot was a good mystery, and the ending was surprising. The movie also featured early appearances by Bela Lugosi and Robert Young. A very good start to a successful detective series. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 12/28/24 Full Review Audience Member The best movie character ever portrayed: Warner Oland as Charlie Chan! Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/26/23 Full Review Audience Member The earliest surviving Charlie Chan picture with Warner Oland seems to be in pretty good shape, with some nice shots of Hawaii. It also has the kind of static staging typical of early talkies -- but this "all the suspects gathered in a room" format became a mainstay of the "whodunnit" picture and most of the Charlie Chan films adhered to the formula. This one is lifted by the presence of Bela Lugosi (suspect #1 of course) and an impossibly young Robert Young. A Hollywood actress is murdered but another murder three years earlier seems to hold some clues to this one. A few too many undifferentiated suspects and a hard to solve puzzle don't really diminish the pleasures of the formula, if you are into that kind of thing. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/04/23 Full Review Audience Member Death is a black camel that kneels unbidden at every gate--Earliest surviving Warner Oland Chan Film!! Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/22/23 Full Review Audience Member Lugosi is assured and confident. The chemistry between him and Warner Oland is undeniable. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/06/23 Full Review Read all reviews
The Black Camel

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Movie Info

Synopsis Sleuth Charlie Chan (Warner Oland) asks a fortuneteller (Bela Lugosi) and others about a starlet slain in Hawaii.
Director
Hamilton MacFadden
Production Co
Fox Film Corporation
Genre
Mystery & Thriller
Original Language
English
Release Date (DVD)
Aug 14, 2007
Runtime
1h 11m