Bill Martin (Dick Foran) is a man who is one step ahead of his creditors when he inherits something odd--a castle on a lonely island in the Caribbean. He decides to use this to his advantage and offers to take people on a treasure hunting expedition there...if they can afford the fare on his boat. However, once there it becomes obvious that there's already a treasure hunter there...and they seem willing to kill the boat load of people if necessary. As for the visitors, they are a motley crew...with everyone from a wanted man to a cousin wanting to buy the mansion to another crook! What's to come of all this?This is a slick little B-mystery film from Universal...and the studio was excellent at making these wonderful atmospheric cheap pictures. While never brilliant in any way, it is reasonably well made and entertaining.By the way, Foran's sidekick in the film is Fuzzy Knight...and fortunately Knight does NOT use his stuttering schtick at all in the movie...thank goodness!

The film starts out a little slow but once they get to the island (about 30 minutes into the film) the movie gets good - funny. There are some suspenseful moments, a neat mystery to solve and plenty of comedy to kept it interesting.Panama Pete (The Phantom)is played by Foy Van Dolsen but I could easily see John Carradine in this role for some reason. But The Phantom is not the only reason to watch this one - the rest of the cast/characters are likable in a neat plot - so this movie is worth watching if you like a pretty good comedy-mystery story.I would not say this is Universal's best film of the time era but it certainly is a joyful watch.6.5/10

This actually seems more like an episode of "Scooby Doo" than a movie made long before that animated series took Saturday children's programming to a new level. The opening shot (a peg-legged man walking along the docks) gives the impression that this is going to be a throw-back to the Gothic horror films of the early 30's but for the first half, all you get is the set-up with some comic relief long before the group of actors here get to the actual island home, abandoned they say for centuries and now filled with pigeons whom the guests initially assume are bats.Walter Catlett and Leo Carrillo provide the bulk of comedy relief, with Dick Foran and Peggy Moran the typical romantic interests, the young lady of course involved in some antics straight out of the original "Cat and the Canary". Universal always managed to hide the low budgets of these programmers with some fast-moving photography and sets that, even if recycled, make the movie appear better than it actually is.

A motley assortment of people go to Sir Henry Morgan's island for a treasure hunt. The group runs afoul of a creepy killer known as "The Phantom." Director George Waggner, working from an eventful and surprisingly witty script by Victor McLeod, relates the blithely dippy story at a constant snappy pace and maintains a breezy lighthearted tone throughout. Moreover, the cast have a ball with their colorful roles: Dick Doran as amiable down-on-his luck boat captain Bill Martin and Fuzzy Knight as Martin's oafish stuttering partner Stuff Oliver make for engaging leads, the pretty Peggy Moran brings a sweetly spunky charm to her role as the sassy Wendy Creighton, Leo Carrillo is a hale'n'hearty delight as jolly peg-legged skipper Tobias Clump, plus there are nice turns by John Eldridge as the shifty Cousin George, Lewis Howard as dour sourpuss Thurman Coldwater, Hobart Cavanaugh as the timid Professor Jasper Quinley, Walter Catlett as the pesky Sergeant McGoon, and Iris Adrian as brassy moll Arleen Grady. With his gaunt face, deep gravel voice, lean build, and flowing black cape, Foy Van Dolsen makes for a nifty villain as the Phantom. Elwood Bredell's crisp black and white cinematography makes inspired use of light and shadow. The lively film library score likewise does the trick. The revelation of the real bad guy's identity is a genuine surprise. Moreover, there's a good-natured sensibility evident throughout which makes this admittedly slight hour long quickie a lot of fun to watch. A pleasingly inane and immaterial diversion.