EssenceStory Well Deserved Praise

BootDigest Such a frustrating disappointment

Borgarkeri A bit overrated, but still an amazing film

Sammy-Jo Cervantes There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

Glen McCulla Sax Rohmer's fiendish menace from the Orient, the diabolical Dr. Fu Manchu, springs to life on the silver screen embodied by the decidedly European Christopher Lee in this, the first of five fiendish flicks of fright.I find it very hard to take these films seriously, coming back to them after Steve Coogan and Mark Gatiss' superb parody in "Dr. Terrible's House of Horrible". I almost expected the legendary Mr. Lee to come out with lines like 'Something has happened to my Woo-Woo', or indeed 'You have walked into my trap, and now the time has come for me to shut my trap'. However, Lee is superb as always, with able support from the lovely Tsai Chin as Lin Tang, deadly daughter of Fu Manchu. These menaces from the East are ranged against Nigel Green as Nayland Smith of Scotland Yard, and Howard Marion Crawford as his stalwart sidekick Dr. Petrie, who must stop their plan to distil the deadly poison of the Tibetan black hill poppy.Despite an obvious limited budget, with Dublin standing in for 1920s Limehouse, the film holds up well. Co-production cash from Germany means we get a decidedly Teutonic supporting cast (including the gorgeous Karin Dor, probably best known as Helga Brandt in "You Only Live Twice" - costarring Tsai Chin, funnily enough). One of the biggest distractions for me, however, was the sight of Jim Norton, Bishop Brennan of "Father Ted", in the small role of the professor's driver.All good pulpy fun, from the days when it was acceptable to "yellow up" a white actor to play an Asian. They don't make 'em like this anymore.

lost-in-limbo There's a long winded list of Fu Manchu films going back to the 1920s up until 1980, but director Don Sharp and producer/writer Harry Alan Towers' 1965 matinée crime mystery adventure "The Face of Fu Manchu" starring Nigel Green and Christopher Lee in the title role happened to be my first encounter of the callous mastermind Fu Manchu. Quite a low-budget fare, but what makes it a fun outing is Sharp's precisely lean direction makes good use of the detailed location work and moves at a cracking pace (since the chase between nemesis's is a race against the clock) blending together the unpredictable nature of the unfolding narrative/tough action rather well, while upfront actor Nigel Green gives a stellar performance as the persistent detective Nayland Smith of Scotland Yard. Green breathes confidence, and the hearty script ably compels and allows for the strong performances. Lee fits in the calculative role of Manchu and the likes of Tsai Chin and Howard Marion Crawford are durable in their roles. The venturesome tone is bathed in a comic book frame, but I found the music score to be intrusively cued and the conclusion to be somewhat anticlimactic to the actual build-up.

Space_Lord Bought this film for 5 bucks so I was expecting to be disappointed. Pleasantly surprised however!! I recommend that if you watch this film you should view Fu Manchu as the hero and Smith the villain, they're both as mad as hatters anyway! And Manchu as the hero makes the film much more entertaining and watchable! You'll find yourself rooting for him! Don't believe me? Try it!! Christopher Lee is a weird choice to play a Chinese criminal mastermind (or is he a genius?) but considering the era the film was made, who else could they have cast? An actual Chinese? Not bloody likely!!! We're British!!!

Infofreak 'The Face Of Fu Manchu' is the first in a series of five movies produced by the legendary Harry Allan Towers. Towers is probably best known for his collaborations with Jess Franco, indeed Franco directed the last two movies in the series, but this one is directed by Don Sharp ('Rasputin: The Mad Monk', 'Psychomania') and scripted by Towers himself. Horror legend Christopher Lee plays the fiendish Dr Fu Manchu, super criminal, and Nigel Green ('Zulu', 'Countess Dracula') plays his nemesis Sir Nayland Smith. Towers plays fast and loose with Sax Rohmer's original characters and stories with entertaining results. The main reason the movie works is because of the performances by Lee and especially Green, who is just terrific. The plot concerns the kidnapping of a German scientist (played by Joachim Fuchsberger) who Fu Manchu forces to develop a super weapon. The lovely Karin Dor ('You Only Live Twice') plays the scientist's daughter, Tsai Chin is Fu Manchu's evil daughter Lin Tang, and Howard Marion-Crawford is Nayland Smith's Watson-like sidekick Dr. Petrie. 'The Face Of Fu Manchu' isn't a great movie by any means but it's fun to watch, and a great way to spend a rainy afternoon.