Doomed to Die (1940)

Features Boris Karloff as Mr.Wong

You can find more information regarding this film on its IMDb page.

This item is part of the collection: Feature Films

Production Company: Monogram Pictures
Audio/Visual: sound, b&w

Creative Commons license: Public Domain

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Reviewer: surfvh - - March 21, 2007
Subject: Mr. Wong does it again

An amusing film with Boris Karloff toning down his wilder side (which he shows wonderfully in "Charlie Chan at the Opera" for instance). Definitely a very comedic film for a mystery. Very much worth watching. Go for it!

Reviewer: Spuzz - - March 27, 2006
Subject: Mr. Wong! What are YOU doing here?

This is a pretty amusing, if slightly racist movie here. Boris Karloff plays a supposedly famous detective here, A Mr. Wong, who is asked to look into a murder of a shipping magnate. Was it done by the spurned lover of the magnate's daughter? Wong doesnt think so and goes into a tireless search for clues to the killing. Amusingly, Wong magically appears everywhere he's supposed to (check your fire escapes!) and uses until-now unknown methods of detective work (Papers that are burned to a crisp can be examined by infra-red light!). This is more than slightly ridiculous, and the fact that Karloff is playing an Asian character makes it even MORE so, so all in all, this turned out to be a lot of goofy fun :)

Reviewer: terracesider - - March 18, 2006
Subject: The Reynolds and Withers Show

The plot is as thin as a silicon wafer but Karloff is as good as ever. However, for once he does not dominate the film. Rather, the honours are taken by Marjorie Reynolds and Grant Withers. In (I think) their 3rd outing together in the series and displaying an electrifying chemistry, they bounce wit and repartee back and forth with exquisite timing. Worth watching for those two alone.

Reviewer: jimelena - - November 21, 2005
Subject: Standard Faire

Mr. Wong (Boris Karloff) solves the case of who killed shipping magnate Cyrus P. Wentworth (Melvin Lang). Wentworth's ship "The Wentworth Castle" had caught on fire with loss of life. The shipping tycoon is killed by persons unknown but police captain Bill Street (Grant Withers) points the finger at Dick Fleming (William Stelling), the son of a rival tycoon who is in love with Wentworth's daughter Cynthia (Catherine Craig). Cub reporter Bobby Logan (Marjorie Reynolds) assigns Mr. Wong (Karloff) to solve the case. Which the eminent Oriental sleuth does. The burning of the fictional "Wentworth Castle" was actual footage from the infamous 1934"Morro Castle" fire, a tragedy that took the lives of 137 passengers.
This is the last in the series and that usually means not as good as the rest. But the rest were just so-so, so this is just as good.