TCM Spotlight: Charlie Chan Collection

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TCM Spotlight: Charlie Chan Collection

Dark Alibi (1946) Dangerous Money (1946)

The Trap (1946) The Chinese Ring (1947)

Titles

"Dark Alibi": A race against time! Charlie Chan (Sidney Toler) must act quickly to stop the execution of an innocent Death Row inmate. With Number Three Son (Benson Fong) and Birmingham Brown (Mantan Moreland).

"Dangerous Money": "We'll show Pop how modern criminology works." Number Two Son (Victor Sen Young) and Chattanooga Brown (Willie Best) aim to help Chan as he investigates a murder on an ocean cruise to Samoa.

"The Trap": Who's killing showgirls in sun-drenched Malibu? Sidney Toler appears as venerable Chan for the final time in a snappy whodunit that includes Victor Sen Young and Mantan Moreland.

"The Chinese Ring": A Chinese princess is murdered - in Chan's house! Roland Winters debuts as Charlie Chan in a mystery whose atmospheric settings include San Francisco's Chinatown. With Victor Sen Young and Mantan Moreland.

Posters

Theatrical Releases: Various from 1946 - 1947

DVD Reviews

DVD Review: Warner - Region 1,2,3,4 - NTSC

DVD Box Cover

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Distribution

Warner - Region 1,2,3,4 - NTSC

Recommend:

DVDBeaver whole-heartedly recommend all five of the Fox Charlie Chan Boxsets:

Bitrate

Dark Alibi (1946)

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Dangerous Money (1946)

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The Trap (1946)

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The Chinese Ring (1947)

Time:

4 1/4 hrs. total on four discs

Audio

English (original mono)

Subtitles

English (SDH), Spanish, French, None

Features

Release Information:
Studio: Warner

Aspect Ratio:
All Original Aspect Ratios - 1.33

Edition Details:

None

DVD Release Date: June 8th, 2010
4 tiered digipak
Chapters: various

Comments:

Under the "TCM Spotlight'' label we get four, new to (non-burned) DVD, Chan titles via Monogram - three with Sidney Toler and the first with Roland Winters. All of the surviving Fox Chan titles (four are no longer believed to exist) are already out on video. MGM, which owns the earlier Monogram titles with Toland, released six of them a few years back in the "Charlie Chan Chanthology'' set.

NOTE: Although the 4 main features of this boxset are housed in a 4-tired digi-pak inside a cardboard box are not sold separately at this time. They and can only be obtained in the Warner's TCM Spotlight: Charlie Chan Collection. They have been transferred in the NTSC standard, coded for Region 1, 2, 3, and 4.

Image: All 4 of the transfer are on single-layered discs which is not so bad considering they are only hour long black and white films not sharing the disc with any extra features. They have each been through some digital restoration process and are very clean showing grain with good contrast. They give consistent presentations and I don't have any complaints with the appearance. They are progressive and look quite acceptable.

Audio - Decent with very little audible hiss and overall dialogue remains consistent and clear. It is expected that there is some dynamic weakness considering the age of the films but it is easily good enough for standard viewing. Comparatively speaking it may be a at about the same level as the video quality.

All edition has optional subtitles in English (SDH), French or Spanish.

There are no extras at all - not even trailers.

Transfers are better than I expected. All four are pretty good Chan features with Victor Sen Young as a numbered son and Mantan Moreland or Willie Best sharing some wide-eyed comic relief. The total lack of extras seems a little cheeky for the price but fans of the inscrutable detective will certainly enjoy these features.