Sinister Hands

Mysterious psychic adviser, Swami Yomurda, lures a flighty socialite into a web of the occult, against the wishes of her powerful millionaire husband, Richard Lang. Adding to Richard's displeasure is his daughter's dapper two-timing suitor with connections to the mob. Tensions erupt during a poolside party held at the Lang Mansion. Begrudging his wife's request to host a seance at their home, Richard seals his fate. During a spiritual reading performed by Swami Yomurda, Richard is murdered. Police detective, Captain Devlin (Jack Mulhall) arrives on the scene determined to find the killer. Devlin finds that everyone had a motive for the murder. Was it the mobster? The butler? Or perhaps, the mysterious Swami? Devlin knows - or thinks he does, until a second victim is found dead by the same sinister hands.

Directed by Armand Schaefer, Sinister Hands is a riveting whodunit colored with splashes of corruption, debauchery and the occult. Notably, Mischa Auer's intense portrayal of Swami Yomurda set the stage for a much more sinister reprisal of the charlatan in Sucker Money (1933).