Professor Popinjay's Compendium of Perspicacity

A Non-Review by Prof. Popinjay

I’d like to say that even though this film was released in 1939 it seems ahead of its time and contains no offensive stereotypes but that would be a lie. I found it fascinating though that the whole Mr. Moto series presented a Japanese hero during a time when US relations with Japan were strained (to put it in polite and unrealistic terms). Compared with other films of the time, any anti-Japanese sentiments are downplayed considerably and really only epitomized by less admirable characters. Of course Mr. Moto himself was not portrayed by a Japanese man even while a character who impersonates Mr. Moto as a decoy WAS actually Japanese. It certainly threw everyone off in the movie who were all likely expecting Mr. Moto, the famous Japanese detective, to actually BE Japanese. Instead the title character was played by Peter Lorre, a Slovakian actor many will remember often lampooned in Looney Tunes shorts.
Surprisingly Lorre played the part very respectfully. He only personified the offensive stereotypes when the character was trying to throw off the scent of narrow-minded ne’er-do-wells. It doesn’t make it acceptable by any means but it had purpose and it showed the ignorance of the villains rather than poke fun at real culture. Even Lorre demonstrated contempt for the culprits who would accept at face value this charade simply because they expected nothing more than a caricature from a foreigner. It was nothing like Mickey Rooney’s travesty in Breakfast at Tiffany’s but Mr. Moto should have been portrayed by an actual Japanese man. There’s no reason why they couldn’t have.
Peter Lorre fascinates me. He got typecast as a sycophantic Igor-like stooge and the Looney Tunes caricatures were not favorable for his image but personally I thought he was quite dapper. He was a phenomenal actor and it’s a pitty he didn’t get more varied roles.
As for this film, meh. The aspects I mentioned as a piece of history has been interesting but beyond that it’s skipable. I haven’t researched it but I know this is toward the last of a series. I’m sure the anti Japanese sentiment of the times lead to this one being swept under the rug. I like the idea though; an “unsuspecting” detective playing everyone’s prejudices against them. It could work if it were made just a bit more aware of itself. And for crying out loud cast Mokomichi Hayami as Mr. Moto!