Irene Ware and Bela Lugosi in Chandu the Magician 1932

''Chandu the Magician'' is a 1932 American

pre-Code Pre-Code Hollywood was the brief era in the American film industry between the widespread adoption of sound in film in 1929LaSalle (2002), p. 1. and the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code censorship guidelines, popularly known ...

mystery Mystery, The Mystery, Mysteries or The Mysteries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional characters *Mystery, a cat character in ''Emily the Strange'' Films * ''Mystery'' (2012 film), a 2012 Chinese drama film * ''Mystery'' ( ...

- fantasy film starring

Edmund Lowe Edmund Dantes Lowe (March 3, 1890 – April 21, 1971) was an American actor. His formative experience began in vaudeville and silent film. Biography Lowe was born in San Jose, California. His father was a local judge. His childhood home was a ...

as Frank Chandler and

Bela Lugosi Béla Ferenc Dezső Blaskó (; October 20, 1882 – August 16, 1956), known professionally as Bela Lugosi (; ), was a Hungarian and American actor best remembered for portraying Count Dracula in the 1931 horror classic ''Dracula'', Ygor in ''S ...

as the villain Roxor that he must stop. Based on the radio play of the same name, written by Harry A. Earnshaw, Vera M. Oldham and R.R. Morgan. The radio series was broadcast from 1932 to 1933, and Fox obtained the rights hoping the film would appeal to a ready-made audience. In 1934 Chandu returned in a twelve part serial, '' The Return of Chandu'', with

playing the title role.

Plot

For three years, Frank Chandler has studied eastern magic with the

Yogi A yogi is a practitioner of Yoga, including a sannyasin or practitioner of meditation in Indian religions.A. K. Banerjea (2014), ''Philosophy of Gorakhnath with Goraksha-Vacana-Sangraha'', Motilal Banarsidass, , pp. xxiii, 297-299, 331 Th ...

s in India and is now known by his new identity, Chandu. He now has the power to teleport, astral project, mesmerize, as well as project illusions. With these supernatural abilities he has been entrusted by his teacher to "go forth with his youth and strength to conquer the evil that threatens mankind". Chandu is sent to Egypt to deal with an Egyptian megalomaniac known as Roxor, played by

. Roxor kidnaps Chandu's brother-in-law, Robert Regent, an inventor who has developed a death ray whose beams reach halfway round the world. The evil Roxor plots to use the ray to aid his plans for world domination. Chandu must utilise all his psychic abilities to rescue his brother-in-law, and also his sister and their children, whom Roxor has kidnapped in a plot to force Regent into revealing the secrets of his death ray. Chandu's sweetheart Egyptian Princess Nadji is also kidnapped, leaving Chandu with the quandary whom to rescue first. Using his Yogi abilities, Chandu makes daring escapes, including one from a submerged sarcophagus. Eventually he succeeds in rescuing everyone and mesmerizing Roxor long enough to destroy both the death ray and the villain's entire lair.

Production

William Cameron Menzies William Cameron Menzies (July 29, 1896 – March 5, 1957) was an American film production designer (a job title he invented) and art director as well as a film director and producer during a career spanning five decades. He began his career ...

who worked as the art director on '' The Thief of Bagdad'' (1924), employs every special effect trick of the trade, many miniatures, optical effects, dry for wet to create a visually exciting film.

Cast

as Chandu/Frank Chandler *

as Roxor *

Irene Ware Irene Ware (born Irene Catherine Ahlberg; November 6, 1910 – March 11, 1993) was an American actress. She was a beauty queen and showgirl before appearing in 29 films between 1932 and 1940, and is mostly remembered for her roles as Princess Na ...

as Princess Nadji *

Herbert Mundin Herbert Thomas Mundin (21 August 1898 – 5 March 1939) was an English character actor. He was frequently typecast in 1930s Hollywood films like ''The Adventures of Robin Hood'' as an older cheeky eccentric, a type helped by his jowled features ...

as Albert Miggles *

Henry B. Walthall Henry Brazeale Walthall (March 16, 1878 – June 17, 1936) was an American stage and film actor. He appeared as the Little Colonel in D. W. Griffith's ''The Birth of a Nation'' (1915). Early life Henry B. Walthall was born March 16, 1878 on a ...

as Robert Regent *

Weldon Heyburn Weldon Heyburn (born Weldon Heyburn Franks; September 19, 1903 – May 18, 1951) was an American character actor. Early years The son of Marie Pierce and United States Army Col. Wyatt G. Franks, Heyburn was most likely born in Washington, ...

as Abdulah *

June Lang June Lang (born Winifred June Vlasek, May 5, 1917 – May 16, 2005) was an American film actress. Early life Born Winifred June Vlasek in Minneapolis, Minnesota, she was the daughter of Edith and Clarence Vlasek, After the family moved to Los An ...

as Betty Lou Regent *Michael Stuart as Bobby Regent *

Virginia Hammond Virginia Hammond (August 20, 1893 – April 6, 1972) was an American film and theatre actress. Born in Staunton, Virginia. Hammond was the daughter of a Confederate army major. Hammond began her career in 1907, where she made her theatre debu ...

as Dorothy Regent *

Nigel De Brulier Nigel De Brulier (born Francis George Packer; 8 August 1877 – 30 January 1948) was an English stage and film actor who began his career in the United Kingdom before relocating to the United States. Biography De Brulier was born in Frenchay, a ...

as Yogi Teacher (uncredited) * John George as Bidder (uncredited) * Charles Stevens as Ali (uncredited)

Critical reception

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' called it "whooping entertainment for the children and a series of naïvely juvenile escapades for the grown-ups".

References

External links