The Jade Mask (1945)

Scientist "Harper" (Frank Reicher) spends his time in his smoky lab working with his assistant "Meeker" (Hardie Albright) when he suddenly disappears and his dedicated butler "Roth" (Cyril Delevanti) asserts that he must have been murdered! Quickly it falls to "Charlie" (Sidney Toler) to help the equally proverb-prone sheriff (Al Bridge) get to the bottom of things. The house is full of gadgetry, from state-of-the-art electric gates to secret panels and high-end security throughout. Why? Well just as our intrepid sleuth is starting to wonder, the investigation is "helped" by his recently evicted No. 4 son "Eddie" (Edwin Luke) and their long time associate "Birmingham Brown" (Mantan Moreland). Always going to be more of an hindrance than an help, "Charlie" must now try to prove his mettle and discover just what did happen to "Harper" and why - and there are no shortages of twists behind the plethora of perfectly crafted masks that adorn the walls around the home. I usually found that the engagingly cowardly "Birmingham" made more of an impact on the plot with these thrillers, but here he's distinctly underused as the story rather stutters along relying more on the gizmos, dolls and low-wattage on display than a decently written script or constructed plot. Even the normally reliable Toler looks like he might have preferred to sit this one out. It's watchable enough, just not one I think I will remember for long.