Mr. Moto and the smugglers' gang

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Movie
German title Mr. Moto and the smugglers' gang
Original title Think Fast, Mr. Moto
Country of production United States
original language English
Publishing year 1937
length 70 minutes
Rod
Director Norman Foster
script Norman Foster
production Sol M. Wurtzel
music RH Bassett ,
Samuel Kaylin
camera Harry Jackson
cut Alex Troffey
occupation
synchronization

Mr. Moto and the Smuggler's Gang (alternative title: Mr. Moto and the Smuggler's Ring ) is an American crime film about the mysterious Japanese detective Mr. Moto . It is the first in an eight-part series of Mr. Moto films, all based on the Mr. Moto short stories by John P. Marquand . In the film, Mr. Moto tries to stop a smuggling operation .

action

The film begins with the detective Mr. Moto, who disguised as a street vendor tries to sell goods to passers-by. He sees a man with a tattoo in the form of the Union Jack to leave a business. Moto then enters the shop and tries to sell the owner a rare diamond . He discovers a male corpse hidden in a wicker basket and brings down the shopkeeper with his knowledge of judo .

Later he reserved a cabin on a freighter bound for Shanghai . Also on board the freighter is Bob Hitchings, Jr., the ship owner's son. Before sailing, the ship's owner, Hitchings Sr., gives his son a confidential letter, which he should hand over to the head of the shipping company's branch in Shanghai. While Hitchings and Moto get to know each other as Moto helps overcome a hangover , the detective notices the letter. Hitchings complains to Moto that there are no pretty women aboard the ship. After a layover in Honolulu , a beautiful woman named Gloria Danton steps aboard the ship and she and Hitchings fall in love. Gloria, however, is a spy for Nicolas Marloff, who is planning a smuggling operation from Shanghai. Gloria sends regular messages to Marloff and disappears without saying goodbye to Hitchings. Moto catches a steward looking for the confidential letter from Hitchings and confronts the steward that he is also the murderer of the man in the wicker basket when he discovers the Union Jack tattoo. Moto throws the man overboard and takes the letter.

In Shanghai, Hitchings hands the letter to branch manager Joseph B. Wilkie, but it is blank. When Hitchings calls his father, he tells him that he should keep an eye out for smugglers. However, Hitchings is persistently looking for Gloria and he learns from a stranger that she is in an "international club". He goes to this club with Wilkie, as does Moto, who wants to meet a friend there. Hitching finds Gloria, who works as an artist at the club, and takes her into the locker room. The club owner Marloff, however, discovers the two and locks them both up because Hitchings knows too much for him. Moto asks his friend to call the police while he looks for Marloff himself. Disguised as a smuggler, he brings Marloff to lead him to Gloria and Hitchings. Although Moto's friend is shot while trying to call the police, she still manages to tell the police where Gloria is.

Wilkie finds Marloff and demands the release of Gloria and Hitchings. Marloff, who finds out that Moto is not a smuggler, is held by him. Moto tells Wilkie to take Marloff's pistol , and when it is removed, a shot goes off that kills Marloff. When the police storm the building, Moto explains that Wilkie is the real boss of the smugglers' ring. Wilkie had previously exchanged the letter and killed Moto's friends. Moto gave Wilkie the opportunity to kill Marloff because he was a member of the conspiracy. Ultimately, Wilkie was arrested too, and everything dissolves into pleasure.

criticism

The lexicon of international films described the film as “a trivial adventure crime thriller colportage, particularly appealing thanks to Peter Lorre, who portrays Moto in a masterful mixture of cunning and quick-wittedness, gentleness and hardness”.

Sequels

The film was followed by seven sequels by 1939:

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Mr. Moto and the Smugglers' Gang in the Lexicon of International Films Template: LdiF / Maintenance / Access used