Chandu the Magician (1932)

User Rating:

6.2/10   

Directors:

William Cameron Menzies
Marcel Varnel

Writers:

Harry A. Earnshaw (radio serial) &
Vera M. Oldham (radio serial) ...
(more)

Release Date:

18 September 1932 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Fantasy | Horror | Sci-Fi

Plot:

When delusional madman Roxor kidnaps a scientist in hopes of using his death ray to achieve world dominance, he is opposed by Chandu, a powerful hypnotist and yogi.

Plot Keywords:

Death Ray | Yogi | Magician | Megalomaniac | Brother In Law

Cast

Edmund Lowe	...	Chandu / Frank Chandler
Irene Ware	...	Princess Nadji
Bela Lugosi	...	Roxor
Herbert Mundin	...	Albert Miggles
Henry B. Walthall	...	Robert Regent
Weldon Heyburn	...	Abdullah
June Lang	...	Betty Lou Regent (as June Vlasek)
Michael Stuart	...	Bobby Regent (as Nestor Aber)
Virginia Hammond	...	Dorothy Regent
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Nigel De Brulier	...	Yogi Teacher (uncredited)
John George	...	Third Man Bidding on Betty Lou (uncredited)
Charles Stevens	...	Ali - Nadji's Servant (uncredited)
Dick Sutherland	...	Henchman (uncredited)

Directed by
William Cameron Menzies		(as Wiliam C. Menzies)
Marcel Varnel

Writing credits
Harry A. Earnshaw		(radio serial) &
Vera M. Oldham		(radio serial) and
R.R. Morgan		(radio serial)
Barry Conners		(screenplay) and
Philip Klein		(screenplay)
Guy Bolton		script and additional dialogue (uncredited)
Bradley King		script and additional dialogue (uncredited)
Harry Segall		script and additional dialogue (uncredited)

Original Music by
R.H. Bassett		(uncredited)
Peter Brunelli		(uncredited)
Louis De Francesco		(uncredited)
Glen Knight		(uncredited)

Cinematography by
James Wong Howe		(as James Howe)

Film Editing by
Harold D. Schuster		(uncredited)

Art Direction by
Max Parker

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Walter Mayo	....	assistant director (uncredited)

Sound Department
Joseph E. Aiken	....	sound recordist

Camera and Electrical Department
Jack Epstein	....	assistant camera (uncredited)
Paul Lockwood	....	assistant camera (uncredited)
Irving Rosenberg	....	camera operator (uncredited)
Anthony Ugrin	....	still photographer (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Earl Luick	....	wardrobe

Music Department
Louis De Francesco	....	musical director
Val Burton	....	composer: stock music (uncredited)
Alfred Dalby	....	composer: stock music (uncredited)
Heinrich Kiehl	....	composer: stock music (uncredited)
Edmond Lavagne	....	composer: stock music (uncredited)
André Petiot	....	composer: stock music (uncredited)
Léo Pouget	....	composer: stock music (uncredited)
Henri Poussigue	....	composer: stock music (uncredited)
J.S. Zamecnik	....	composer: stock music (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Fox Film Corporation

Distributors

• Fox Film Corporation (1932) (USA) (theatrical)
• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (2008) (USA) (DVD)
• Rex Miller Video (video)

Runtime:

71 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric System)

Certification:

USA:Approved (PCA #4786-R, 11 October 1938 for re-release) | USA:Passed (National Board of Review) | USA:TV-G (TV rating) | USA:Unrated

Company:

Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

In the subsequent Chandu serial, producers promoted Lugosi to the role of the magician-yogi.

Goofs:

Continuity: During the scene where Chandu sneaks into the slave auction by luring the guard away with an astral projection. The guard chases the illusion, corner it, only to see it disappear before him. Shot over his shoulder we see him raise his hands in amazement and drop his rifle. There is a cut and the new angle shows the guard from the front with a look of stupefaction on his face - but still holding the gun.

Quotes:

Yogi Teacher: Thou has done well, my son. To few, indeed, of thy race have the secrets of the yogi been revealed.
Chandu - aka Frank Chandler: To you, my teacher, I express my thanks. What more can I learn?
Yogi Teacher: Nothing now. The world needs thee. Go forth in the youth and strength and conquer the evil that threatens Mankind.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Masters of Magic: The World of Chandu (2008) (V)

Soundtrack:

How Dry I Am

Talk about COOL--this is a really exciting 1930s Saturday morning all rolled into one film!

Okay, I'll admit that technically speaking, this film isn't what you'd expect for a score of 8. After all, this was a very low-budget production and occasionally it really shows it--though most of the time, they do make the most of their limited resources. The film does earn super-high marks, though, for its ability to entertain, as there is one thrill after another after another--just like a Saturday morning movie serial condensed into one great package. In fact, it isn't all that surprising that just two years later they DID make a serial version of the Chandu character and a couple more movies--though oddly, he was played by Bela Lugosi in them, while in CHANDU THE MAGICIAN, he actually played the evil villain!!

Edmund Lowe stars here as Chandu--a Westerner who has "learned the psychic powers of the East". In other words, he spent years with gifted Hindu holy men and learned to use their great powers to control mens' minds. Using hypnosis, Chandu can make just about anyone do or see anything!! This makes him one heck of an amazing super-hero. Some of his tricks involved making men think their guns had turned to snakes, the ability to make doubles of himself to lure away the bad guys and his funny ability to mess with his man servant whenever he tries to take a drink!! Aside from comic heroes such as Mandrake, this is a truly unique character--and a very, very unique one for film. The closest I can think of are films such as THE COBRA WOMAN and ALI BABA, but they really aren't the same. Considering how exciting and fun this film was, I really wished they had made more of them--especially since the writing was so "seat of your pants" good.

In addition to these cool psychic powers, the film features a death ray, kidnappings and an evil cult of followers for Lugosi--what more could you possibly want in an old-time action-suspense film?! This is really great and exciting stuff--much better than the usual film for Lugosi or Lowe--who both do an exceptional job in this film. Too bad they just don't make 'em like they used to.