I'm about to receive a copy of this film, which I've never seen. It is Roland Winters' first appearnce as Chan, I think. Any opinions from those who HAVE seen the picture?
Winters is underrated as Chan. True, Oland and Toler left mighty big shoes to fill and Monogram didn't provide much money to fill them with, but Winters has a sly sense of humor that I find endearing.
This film is ok and I think you will enjoy it. Unfortunately this is one of the hardest to find a decent print of so don't be surprised if the quality isn't that great.
My favorite Winters films are Docks and Golden Eye so if you haven't seen those, I would recommend Docks as your next acquisition.
Good suggestions. I agree with your assessment of Winters and his portrayal of Charlie Chan. In "The Chinese Ring," it may be noted that Chan's hair is jet black. With the next film, it can be seen that a touch of grey is evident. I think that the folks at Monogram realized that without this, Winters' Charlie Chan appeared too young. The argument that they were trying, perhaps to "update" Chan and offer a younger detective can be countered by Lt. Mike Ruark's comments, referring to Charlie Chan as "the old guy."
I enjoy ALL Chan films from the series proper, including the Winters entries. I feel that "The Chinese Ring" is a good one, and it shows the strength of the Charlie Chan character to be able to continue to draw an audience after Toler passed away. Winters did an admirable job, in my humble opinion, and, as you state, he had two sets of mighty large shoes to fill!
