1937's "West of Shanghai" was only the second of five Warner Brothers vehicles for Boris Karloff during the dreaded horror ban of the late 30s, but easily qualifies as the greatest surprise of them all. Whereas "The Walking Dead" turned out to be a successful cross between Universal horror and Warners gangsters, this was a decidedly different affair, the third of four screen versions of Porter Emerson Browne's 1920 play "The Bad Man," preceded by a 1923 silent and 1930 talkie before a 1941 remake all using the original title, in which Mexican bandits led by Pancho Lopez take over Arizona territory. The new setting was changed to reflect the current Sino-Japanese conflict, going through several shooting titles: "China Bandit," "War Lord," "The Adventures of Fang," and "Cornered," Karloff promoted from his intended "Black Widow" for the starring role of Wu Yen Fang, speaking pidgin English in an interesting precursor to his Mr. Wong series at Monogram (the Asian makeup harder to apply but easier to bear than his work with Jack Pierce). John Farrow directed from a Crane Wilbur script (as they would again for the star's upcoming "The Invisible Menace"), depicting rival financiers over an oil field in the north of China, where Fang's army has taken over several villages, including the one where missionary Jane Creed (Beverly Roberts) awaits the unwelcome arrival of her estranged husband Gordon (Ricardo Cortez). He has enough cash to assure himself of wrangling the oil for himself from supervisor Jim Hallet (Gordon Oliver) but doesn't reckon with Myron Galt (Douglas Wood) or daughter Lola (Sheila Bromley) for competition. Fang's arrival proves beneficial for Hallet, who once saved the general's life years before, but what Fang will not understand is Creed's easy manner in bribery but total failure to defend his wife. It takes a full 20 minutes before Karloff enters, then a standard 'B' picture swiftly becomes a comic gem in his off kilter performance, a real change of pace where the villain is a charmer who values loyalty and goes to his death knowing it was inevitable. A young Richard Loo, coming off multiple bits in the Bela Lugosi serial "Shadow of Chinatown," holds his own as Fang's right hand man, destined for a lengthy career that extended into the 70s with roles on KUNG FU and a last feature opposite Christopher Lee, playing industrialist Hai Fat in "The Man with the Golden Gun."
Review of West of Shanghai
