Mr. Moto's Last Warning

Plot synopsis:
The British Navy in Port Said is making plans for naval manoeuvres with the French fleet. Plans are delayed because the British Secret Service has been warned of possible sabotage. On a ship docking in Port Said is Madame Delacour (Margaret Irving), wife of the French naval admiral. Delacour, and her daughter Marie (Joan Carroll), are befriended by the charming Eric Norvel (George Sanders), the goofy Rollo Venables (Robert Coote), and someone posing as Mr. Moto (Teru Shimada). Norvel reveals his true nature when the ship docks and he lures Mr. Moto to his death. This “fake” Mr. Moto turns out to be a fellow agent of Mr. Moto (Peter Lorre) who is posing as a curio dealer Mr. Kuroki.
Norvel takes Delacour and Venables to a variety show featuring Fabian the Great (Ricardo Cortez), a ventriloquist. Fabian is the leader of the gang of saboteurs including Hakim (John Davidson), Captain Hawkins (Leyland Hodgson), Danforth (John Carradine), and Norvel. Danforth is actually a British Secret Service agent named Burke. Moto listens in on their conversation and is almost captured, but Burke helps him escape. Norvel is given the task of learning from Delacour when the French fleet is due at Port Said.
The suspicious Fabian thinks that Kuroki may actually be Mr. Moto. Fabian enlists his girlfriend Connie (Virginia Field), who is unaware he is an agent, to follow Mr. Moto the next day. She sees Moto visit the Port Commandant's office where he learns of the salvage ship "The Vulcan" captained by Hawkins.
Fabian also discovers that Danforth is the secret agent, Burke. Fabian lures Burke to "The Vulcan" and reveals his plan to blow up the French fleet and blame the British. He then kills Burke by trapping him in a diving bell. Norvel gets the information needed and tells Fabian at the theater. Connie overhears the conversation and threatens to call the Port Commandant, but Fabian convinces her to go along with him.
Hakim tries to kill Moto with a bomb, but Moto escapes the explosion and follows Hakim to a warehouse. Moto enlists Venables to help, but Venables is tricked by Norvel. After a fight, Moto and Venables are tied in sacks and thrown into the ocean, but not before Moto tricks Hawkins and grabs a piece of sharp metal. Connie can't bear to see this violence and goes to call the police. Fabian knocks her out and proceeds with his plans.
Moto escapes underwater and frees Venables, who goes to the police. Norvel dives down to await a signal from Fabian but Moto overpowers him and prematurely detonates the explosives meant to destroy the French fleet. Resurfacing, Moto fights with Fabian but Connie shows up and shoots Fabian. Moto discovers the saboteur's plans in Fabian's dummy but never reveals to the audience which country tried to engineer a war between France and England.

Tags: good versus evil, suspenseful, murder, violence

Review:
Peter Lorre is always fun to watch, and this 'Mr. Moto' film gives him a good role that allows him to do a lot of things.
Lorre carries the show, but there is a good supporting cast, especially George Sanders and John Carradine.
Peter Lorre is surprisingly good as the Japanese "international police" detective, altho in this entry he's forced to use a lot of broken English in lieu of a disguise.
It's good stuff, especially if you're also interested in early John Carradine work or think you'd enjoy seeing posh George Sanders putting on a French accent(!).
The film is thus best approached as a kind of fantasy.It is, specifically, a spy thriller, not a mystery at all; it's more closely related to the James Bond films (which are also largely fantasies) than to the Charlie Chan style 'oriental detective' movies of its own day.This is the only widely - and cheaply - available Moto film.
1939's "Mr. Moto's Last Warning" stars Peter Lorre as the Japanese detective, of whom nothing was heard once the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor.
Lorre is surrounded by a great cast, which includes Ricardo Cortez, Virginia Field, John Carradine, and George Sanders.
Lorre not only plays Moto, but his cover, who runs an antique store.The story concerns Moto's investigation of a conspiracy against the British and French governments.
One of the "conspirators" is a British agent, and the two of them discover that the group has put mines in the harbor in order to blow up the French fleet -- the group had been desperately trying to find out the arrival date, and once they got it, set the bombs in place.
The conspirators plan to blame the British for the bombing, hoping to start the Second World War.Lorre does a great job, and Ricardo Cortez, as the head of the group whose works as a ventriloquist as his cover, makes an effective villain.
Virginia Field, one of the "ice cream blondes" of that era was under contract to 20th Century Fox at the time; unfortunately, she never made it to the top, but she was in a lot of good films and is very pretty.
John Carradine is in top form.Entertaining as well as interesting, this is a good entry into the series featuring the brilliant and delightful "Mr. Moto.".
Marquand, Moto was an icy and distinctly lethal Japanese agent; 20th Century Fox, which had earlier created the extremely popular Charlie Chan series, toned down his more deadly qualities, cast German actor Peter Lorre in the role, and between 1937 and 1939 made eight films featuring the character.
MOTO'S LAST WARNING is the sixth film in the series, and it finds Moto (Lorre) working to foil an attempt to set the English and French against each other by blowing up the French fleet as it enters an English-controlled canal in the middle east.
Although the film has a slow start, it is graced with a gifted cast that includes George Sanders, John Carradine, and Ricardo Cortez, and it soon comes up a snappy pace and proves unexpectedly watchable.Over the years the Chan films have drawn considerable condemnation from Chinese Americans due to the fact that Chan was never played by an Asian actor; somewhat curiously, the Moto films have escaped the same degree of politically-correct derision.
Even so, Lorre is always interesting to watch, and his unexpected physicality (Moto is a master of judo) drives the film remarkably well.MR.
MOTO'S LAST WARNING is the only film in the series presently in public domain, a circumstance that seems more accidental than intentional.
High production values compliment an interesting if far-fetched storyline.A gang of jittery international spies working for an un-named foreign power aim to disrupt the French fleet heading into Port Said in Egypt and cause rupture between those very old long-standing allies Britain and France, Moto's aim is to disrupt the baddies first.
All-knowing Ricardo Cortez has a strange job as ventriloquist to his unexplained Cockney dummy Alf, while his second George Sanders puts on a seedy French accent with gusto if not skill.
A tense climax is guaranteed with Moto in the bag, and is ingenious when it arrives.A great little film for those of us who like the genre, not unless..
****SPOILERS**** International policeman Mr. Moto, Peter Lorre, is in a race against time in the movie "Mr. Moto's Last Warning".
Mr. Moto tries to prevent a war from breaking out between the United Kingdom and France that is secretly being instigated by some unnamed country by using a gang of international criminals and saboteurs who plan to use underwater mines.
their plan is to blow up a number of French warships at the mouth of the Suez Canal outside the Egyptian port city of Port Said and blame it on the British.Undercover and underwater Mr. Moto comes through in the clutch and saves the day but not after losing his partner Mr. Moto Jr. Teru Shimada, and British secret agent Richard Blake, John Carradine, in the process.
Fabian getting his co-saboteur Norvel, George Sanders,to go underwater with a diving suit to blow up the flagship of the French Fleet steaming towards the Suez Canal is foiled by Mr. Moto.
Mr. Moto has it out with Fabian who is about to crack Mr. Moto's skull in with a pipe but is shot dead by Connie who changed her mind and came to the aid of jolly old England France and Mr. Moto instead.It was just too darn bad that after Mr. Moto did everything to prevent a major war from breaking out in Europe just some eight months after the release of the movie "Mr.Moto's Last Warning" on January 20, 1939 on September 1, 1939 WWII broke out!.
MOTO (1937), or at least hailed as one of the better products in the eight film series starring the one and only Peter Lorre in the title role.
Marquand, where the Kentaro Moto character is best described in the film as "Nationality, Japanese.
Has been known to use doubles," what really works here is the fine cast of supporting players, namely those familiar names Ricardo Cortez and George Sanders, along with John Carradine and the lesser known Virginia Field making return engagements in the series, both assuming different character roles from earlier entries.On the Valkin vessel bound for Port Said, an assortment of passengers are introduced: Madame Delacour (Margaret Irving) and her six-year- old daughter, Marie (Joan Carol); the French accented Eric Norvel (George Sanders); Rollo Van Debass (Robert Coote), a novelist and buffoon Englishman; and Mr. Moto (Teru Shimada) of the International Police.
As Moto keeps close tabs on Norvel, he also watches a ventriloquist act performed by Fabian the Great (Ricardo Cortez) and his prize dummy, Albert, at the Sultana Theater Music Hall.
Also in the audience is Danford (John Carradine), known only to Moto as Richard Burke, British Agent S-14, also on assignment to foil a dynamiting plot of the French fleet at the entrance of the Suez Canal that's to disrupt Franco-British diplomat relations.
With Mr. Moto posing as Mr. Hykoroki, a shopkeeper at an antique shop of Oriental treasures located across the street from a pub called Connie's Place (owned by Connie Foster (Virginia Field), a woman with a shady past and Fabian's assistant of six years), Moto meets with some near death experiences along the way, but nothing as deadly as coming face to face with its dangerous ring leader.In the tradition of the initial two entries, MR.
Possibly produced and filmed late 1937 or early 1938, aside from George Sanders' name listed fifth in the cast as opposed to third, and that Sanders, Peter Lorre, Virginia Field and Joan Carol having already been featured opposite Dolores Del Rio in LANCER SPY (1937), there's further evidence revealing its earlier production being out of date by 1939 standards during a movie house sequence with the marque reading, "Charlie Chan in Honolulu" with Warner Oland.
This was in my box set of 50 mysteries, all apparently in the public domain, and a cheap set but audio/video was sufficient to watch it without getting annoyed.I would have maybe liked to see more of the Mr Moto character - disguise master, judo master, and overall very resourceful and clever.
The narrative contains no mystery, only the suspense of how Moto will foil an international plot to blow up French ships and start a war.
Moto (Peter Lorre) thwarts a ruthless band of international agents who try to foment an international incident by mining the entrance to the Suez Canal and blaming the British.Worth noting is that one of the saboteurs (Danforth) is played by John Carradine, the patriarch of the Carradine family.
With a little bit of a bow to Alfred Hitchcock's The 39 Steps, Mr. Moto's Last Warning has Peter Lorre going undercover at Port Said to help prevent disaster at the Suez Canal.
As a member of the International Police (Interpol) Lorre goes in disguise as a harmless Japanese antique dealer to prevent skulduggery by Ricardo Cortez, George Sanders and assorted henchmen.Cortez plays a music hall entertainer, a ventriloquist to be precise in the pay of a mysterious foreign power.
So in 1939 a film could still be made about a Japanese operative saving the British and French alliance.Cortez is a very clever villain and Lorre gives himself away when he goes to the aid of Robert Coote playing a silly English agent who gets mugged.
No mild little antique dealer could know judo like that as Cortez correctly surmises.Of course Lorre saves the day, but it's a close run thing.
Mr. Moto's Last Warning is a nicely paced, action packed film and actually correct for its time..
Mr. Moto's Last Warning (1939) *** (out of 4) Mr. Moto (Peter Lorre), believed dead, is assisted by an undercover British agent (John Carradine) as the two try to stop a couple international agents (Ricardo Cortez, George Sanders) from using the Suez Canal to blow up some French ships and blaming the British.
The story is a pretty good one but what really works here is the wonderful cast of character actors who really make this a must see.
It's fun seeing Lorre's Moto up against various other actors who played famous roles themselves and that includes Perry Mason and Sam Spade (Cortez), The Saint (Sanders) and Dracula (Carradine) too.
Seeing the four character actors share the same film makes for a lot of fun and the story itself also helps build some drama and that includes a wonderful underwater sequence that certainly won't be forgotten by anyone who sees it.
Lorre is great as usual but it's actually Cortez who steals the film as the ruthless villain.
As long as you can accept Peter Lorre as a Japanese detective, it's not bad.
At the outset, I must point out that it's very tough to accept the German-born Peter Lorre as a Japanese detective.
MOTO'S LAST WARNING isn't a bad B-movie detective film--nor is it exactly memorable either.Mr. Moto is inexplicably investigating a plot to blow up French and English ships around the Suez Canal.
Ricardo Cortez was an excellent actor and was effective as the bad guy and the rest of the supporting actors, EXCEPT for George Sanders, were very good.
On paper this one looks like it would be the best Mr. Moto film.
It has George Sanders, John Carradine, and Ricardo Cortez in the cast.
Any movie with Lorre, Sanders, Carradine, and Cortez involved is at least worth checking out for yourself..
as moto proves in this film and the u.f.c. proves to this day ju jitsu is the one martial art where a small person like moto can defeat bigger tougher bad guys thru the use of leverage and powerful throws, helio gracie is about moto's size so their fight would have been a great mano y mano match.
Fabian and gang are trying to blow up the entrance to the Suez Canal and start an international war.
The particular country Fabian is working for and the motives as to why are kept a secret, it's up to the viewer to guess because they never tell us - Mr. Moto may loose his job over it (you'll have to watch the film until the ending to get a full understanding of what I mean).The movie is fun to watch.
Worth your time watching if you like the other Mr. Moto films, Peter Lorre or mysteries in general.7.5/10.
Peter Lorre is joined by a great cast of recognizable character actors including George Sanders, John Carradine, E.E. Clive, and Ricardo Cortez as the villain.
Peter Lorre's Mr. Moto again proves to be a master of disguise, a cunning intellect, and an expert at judo.
His casting as a Japanese "International Police" investigator is almost as offbeat as Boris Karloff's portrayal of Mr. Wong in that series of mystery films of the same era.Lorre actually portrays two characters, besides Moto he operates undercover as antiques shop keeper Kuroki.
The group is led by "Fabian the Great" (Ricardo Cortez), who plays in theater shows as a ventriloquist, and includes Eric Norvel (George Sanders), and Danforth (John Carradine).
The actual beard Carradine wears in his role looks quite humorously phony, and makes one thankful for present day film makeup.The mystery here is rather straightforward, no murders to solve and no red herrings as in the Charlie Chan franchise.
As a murderous saboteur, Fabian proves rather inept, as he fails to properly dispatch Moto, and earlier his girlfriend Connie (Virginia Field) who discovers his plot.
Too bad, as Connie does the honors of stopping Fabian during his tussle with Moto.Peter Lorre doesn't look like a very physical guy, small in stature and kind of mousy, so his first on screen jiu jitsu throw caught me off guard.
This movie, released a year later, came after Oland's death in 1938."Mr. Moto's Last Warning" was at least interesting enough to recommend looking up other titles in the series.
I think this is one of the best Moto films, with a lot of action.
Peter Lorre does a good job alternating between the role of Moto and his disguise role as the meek shopkeeper.
A group of spies in Port Said are trying to blow up the French fleet and make it look like England is to blame, thus provoking a war.
Since Mr. Moto works for Japan, the final line in the movie may imply that Japan was behind the spy plot..
With various villain roles behind him ("M", "Mad Love", "The Man Who Knew Too Much"), Peter Lorre was contracted by 20th Century Fox to star in a series of second string features playing Japanese detective Mr. Moto, a "poor man's" Charlie Chan.
An admirable cast of supporting players are featured, including George Sanders, John Carradine and Ricardo Cortez, the later playing a ventriloquist in a vaudeville show.
Mr. Moto is tracking a group of foreign spies intent on destroying the French fleet as it enters the Suez Canal.
By doing so, the foreign powers hope to stir-up animosity between France and England.Mr. Moto's Last Warning is a decent enough entry in the Mr Moto series, but far from being the best.
Mr. Moto's Last Warning has one of the best supporting casts you'll find in one of these films - Geogre Sanders, Ricardo Cortex, John Carradine, Robert Coote, Virginia Field, and E.E. Clive.
Technically, as with all the Moto films, it looks like an A-movie.One small thing that I've always enjoyed about Mr. Moto's Last Warning is the reference to the film Charlie Chan in Honolulu.
By now the Mr. Moto series was becoming no more than the Saturday matinée filler Peter Lorre knew it would be.
He knows the master criminal is in fact Fabian the Great (Ricardo Cortez), a smooth, quick-thinking and ruthless individual posing as a ventriloquist at a seedy Egyptian music hall.
(The movie was made in 1939) Peter Lorre continues to do a fine job as Kentaro Moto.
The famed Japanese detective Mr. Moto(Peter Lorre)fakes his own death to keep tabs on a pair of saboteurs.
A Frenchman, Fabian(Ricardo Cortez), and a British scoundrel named Norvel(George Sander)are trying to stop French ships from passing through the Suez Canal and start a war between France and England.
Peter Lorre as Mr Moto races the clock to stop sabotage against French & British Naval maneuvers in Egypt..
In the long line of 'politically incorrect' Hollywood racial casting, Hungarian born Peter Lorre's Mr Moto is probably the least in need of historical/cultural apologies to facilitate our enjoyment of the eight dandy pics he made as the polite, but not quite knowable Japanese detective.
This one is a particularly good outing as Lorre/Moto benefits from regular helmer Norman Foster's visual flair and his original storyline which has George Sanders & Ricardo Cortez plotting to disrupt joint Naval maneuvers between France & England @ Port Said, Egypt.
I like the Moto series because Peter Lorre is such fun to watch.
While it would have been nice if Hollywood didn't have such an aversion to casting an Asian lead, Lorre does give Mr. Moto a lot of heart and soul.
Fortunately, in spite of the dated story and fantasy elements (this was obviously an expression of some people's hope that the coming conflicts could be diverted by brave and righteous men) I ended up appreciating the craftsmanship of everyone involved and the impressive screen presence of a young, "hot" Peter Lorre.Especially enjoyable was the way the character (and the actor) played with and against the "bug-eyed, buck-toothed Nip" stereotype to fool his enemies.Strong supporting cast here - Sanders, Carradine, and Robert Cortez all do creditable yeoman work and there is hardly a misstep in the screenplay in the service of the plot.In spite of the good work done here,I can't imagine anyone seeking out a "Mr. Moto" movie at this late date, but I can honestly say that this one surprised me.