This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

It's simply great fun, a winsome film and an occasionally over-the-top luxury fantasy that never flags.

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

This attempt to update Charlie Chan to the 1980s and give him a comic bent is highly uneven: there is a load of misplaced, unfunny slapstick in it, and some big names in the cast are terribly wasted. I am a fan of Peter Ustinov (who made this in between my two favorite Poirots) and he is delightful here, but he almost seems like a supporting actor in his own movie; too much of the screen time goes to the ineffectual Richard Hatch as his "number one grandson" (Brian Keith is also very annoying as a loudmouthed police chief). The film is more successful when it sticks closer to the spirit of the original Chan films: I am referring to the b&w flashback sequence and the "clue of the fork in the tea cup", as well as the climactic gathering of the suspects for the unmasking of the "Bizarre Killer", who is, indeed, rather well-camouflaged. But as a comedy, it has very few laughs; for a funnier take on a Charlie Chan-type of detective, see "Murder By Death". ** out of 4.

Having just spent the last several days reviewing past Charlie Chan movies in series chronological order, not to mention previously reviewing Charlie Chan in Paris back in 2006, I decided to finally watch this spoof of the great Honolulu detective that I just bought on VHS from a used video store. In summary, this was a clumsy, jumbled slapstick mess that only rated a few chuckles from me due to some witty lines near the end. And Peter Ustinov is wasted as Chan as he sounds more like an Englishman impersonating a Chinese man than more convincing portrayals from the likes of Warner Oland and Sidney Toler (I have yet to rewatch a Roland Winters one that I haven't seen in 30 years). And how convenient to have his grandson Lee, Jr.'s (Richard Hatch) parents (one of whom is Jewish) be killed in a car crash so as not to have Keye Luke make an appearance. ("No. 1 Son" as a young man here is played by David Hirokane) The fact that he's not there nor is Earl Derr Biggers credited as creator here is just as well since this movie does nothing to honor their contributions. And the supporting cast of Hatch, Lee Grant, Rachel Roberts, Roddy McDowall, Brian Keith, and, in one of her earliest roles, Michelle Pfeiffer are just wasted as well, never mind Angie Dickinson as the Dragon Queen. Director Clive Donner seems to want to do a Mel Brooks-like parody down to the Blazing Saddles-like climax but there's nothing the least bit creatively funny here. So on that note, I'd only recommend Charlie Chan and the Curse of the Dragon Queen for anyone curious about the treatment of this once-iconic hero. P.S. Screenwriter David Axelrod is another of these film and TV members I'm citing as born in my birthtown of Chicago, Ill.

This is a satire of America's favorite Hawaiian detective, Charlie Chan. You immediately know something is wrong when you notice Peter Ustinov is playing Chan. The famous detective is called out of a deserved retirement to solve a murder in San Francisco and confronts his old enemy the Dragon Queen(Angie Dickinson). Another plot is saving the life of his Jewish-Chinese grandson(Richard Hatch). A pretty good line-up of stars take part in this movie that just is not any good. Among the cast: Lee Grant, Brian Keith, Michelle Pfeiffer, Rachel Roberts and Roddy McDowall. Calling this a witty satire is stretching actuality.

Not a good movie. Has a few laughs but mainly nothing a real Chan fan would like to see. It is a spoof, but just doesn't work. Too silly without real slapstick. No real inside jokes for Chan fans. And wouldn't work as a regular comedy, even without the Chan link.