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Regular
Price $14.99
Starring:
Joe Bellan,
David Chow,
Karlene Crockett,
Angie Dickinson,
Larry Duran,
Directed By:
Rated: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Release Date: 1980
Studio: Trinity Home Ent
Format:
Color,
DVD-Video,
NTSC,
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Customer Reviews for
Charlie Chan and The Curse of the Dragon Queen
Stinker
The one or two funny lines were not enough to justify the length of this awful movie. I couldn't even watch it to the end.Charlie Chan and The Curse of the Dragon Queen
What's Up, Doctor Tiger Lily?
Surprisingly funny screwball comedy that mixes "What's Up, Doc?" (1971) with "What's Up, Tiger Lily?" (1966). Many of the funniest slapstick scenes are reminiscent of "What's Up, Doc?" such as tumbling garbage cans, oblivious street crossings leading to big crashes, and even a plate glass delivery truck lasting through many close calls prior to getting destroyed. Like "What's Up, Doc?", there is also a guy hanging onto a banner which rips slowly down across the street. Unlike "What's Up, Doc?", he does not crash into the plate glass truck. Too bad, as that's one of the funniest scenes in the earlier movie. There are plenty of chase scenes that take advantage of the San Francisco hills and backgrounds.
The movie has about as much to do with other Charlie Chan movies as an egg salad recipe has to do with the original Japanese thriller in "What's Up, Tiger Lily?". The faked Chinese accents make it look like the actors are dubbing themselves, which adds to the humor of the movie.
Ustinov himself is actually much funnier in his Poirot mysteries. He did not deliver the famous Chan aphorisms as well as I think he could have. Lets not even talk about his debut operetta during the opening titles. All in all, though, definitely worth watching more than once.Charlie Chan and The Curse of the Dragon Queen
funny
This is a spoof on the more traditional Charlie Chan movies. As spoof's go, it is pretty unoriginal.Charlie Chan and The Curse of the Dragon Queen
Character Actors Redeem Otherwise Uninspired Parody
During the 1930s Charlie Chan films were extremely popular with Asian American audiences; by the 1980s a later generation derrided them for their use of caucasian actors Warner Oland and Sidney Tolar in the title role. CHARLIE CHAN AND THE CURSE OF THE DRAGON QUEEN attempts to play to both sides of the coin, acting as both homage and parody of the original films. Not surprisingly, when released in 1981 it pleased neither.
Set in San Francisco, DRAGON QUEEN finds Chan called out of retirement in Hawaii to uncover a serial killer whose trademark is "bizarre deaths;" he is assisted by his grandson, a bumbling Lee Chan Jr. who proves as much hinderance as help. Like most films that do not fulfill their promise, the problem begins with the script: it never really references the Chan films in any significant way, nor does it ever develop the fangs required of an effective parody. Nor are the two leads well suited to their roles: both Peter Ustinov and Angie Dickinson are wildly out of place as Chan and the Dragon Queen, utterly unfunny in every imaginable way.
The saving grace of the film is in the supporting players. Perhaps the single most successful performer is Lee Grant in the role of Jimmy Jr.'s maternal and very Jewish grandmother. Grant aside, the always memorable Roddy McDowell and the brilliant Rachel Roberts jolt their every scene to life; Brian Keith plays against type as a hysterical and wildly profane police officer; and Richard Hatch is surprisingly good as Chan's bumbling grandson. Michelle Pfeiffer, in one of her earliest roles, is thrown in for good measure--and while the script gives her little to do beyond look pretty and giggle she does both extremely well.
Even so, this is not enough to save the film, which slowly but surely dissolves into a morass of very obvious slapstick humor; when all is said and done, the end result is rather like THE GOOD EARTH MEETS THE PINK PANTHER. It has moments, but it is more awkward than amusing. The DVD includes two bonus shorts, a "Making Of" documentary on the film and a "History Of" American Studios. Both are mildly interesting, but I wouldn't go out of my way. Three stars for the efforts of Lee Grant, Roddy McDowell, Rachel Roberts and company, but--and in the words of the original screen Chan--most viewers should say "Thank you so much!" and pass along another way.
GFT, Amazon ReviewerCharlie Chan and The Curse of the Dragon Queen
One of the WORST movies I have ever watched
If I could rate this film the way it needs to be rated it would be a minus ten. This movie is a waste of money and time.
I love Charlie Chan movies. This junk has Charlie Chan in the title but it's far from being a Charlie Chan film.
If I had watched this before I had watched any other Charlie Chan films, I would have never watched another one.
Sidney Toler and Warner Oland both portrayed Charlie Chan in the original movies and they did a great job. Peter Ustinov murdered the part.
When shopping for movies pass this one by.Charlie Chan and The Curse of the Dragon Queen
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