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Cast
Sidney Toler
as Charlie Chan
Victor Sen Yung
as Jimmy Chan
Lenita Lane
as Lucy Borgia Manderley
Douglass Dumbrille
as Paul Manderley
Steven Geray
as Dr. Retling
Edmund MacDonald
as Walter Hartford
Arleen Whelan
as Brenda Hartford
Ethel Griffies
as Mme. Saturnia, aka Lizzie
Henry Daniell
as Watson King
Richard Derr
as Carl Detheridge
Movie Info & Details
Release Year1942
Runtime1h 02m
LanguageEnglish
CertificationNR
GenresCrime, Mystery, Thriller
Votes20
DirectorHarry Lachman
WritersJohn Francis Larkin
TypeFeature Film
Rating7.1 out of 10
Cast10 credited
Also Known AsCastle in the Desert
About Castle in the Desert
Charlie Chan, with son Jimmy on a week's pass from the Army, takes up a request for help at a castle-home, miles from anywhere in the American desert south-west and inhabited by an eccentric, reclusive historian and his wife, a descendant of Lucrezia Borgia. Once there, he finds the request's legitimacy denied by all who are present, but still necessary as one houseguest has already been murdered, the other guests are at each other's throat, and the Borgia-related chatelain is suspected...
Directed by Harry Lachman, Castle in the Desert leans on a strong ensemble — Sidney Toler, Victor Sen Yung, Lenita Lane — to carry a story that balances spectacle with character.
The film landed with audiences for its craft and performances, and remains one of the most talked-about crime titles of 1942.
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