I've recently read the first two Sax Rohmer Fu Manchu novels and rollicking reads they are indeed. I also more vaguely remember Christopher Lee in the part of the evil doctor in the mid-60's and so was pleased to get the opportunity to finally get the chance to see the first in what turned out to be a short series of film adaptations.
Perhaps it might have helped if I actually hadn't read the books as even with Lee's presence, the film doesn't quite match up to their page-turning excitement. It's also not helped by the less than dynamic playing of the Nayland Smith and Dr Petrie characters as Manchu's pursuers.
You just never really get the impression that anyone's in real danger and while the movie rattled along from location to location, there's not enough exciting action or dread threat displayed to really hold the viewer. I know it was the mid 60's when comic book colour was all the rage but I believe this film could have worked better if it had been darker in tone.
As for the playing Lee unsurprisingly comes off best even if he's lost some of his moustache somewhere, the rest of the cast however appear somewhat lightweight which again for me affected the balance of the film.
Still it was colourful and reasonably fast-moving but in the end I'd have to say, to coin a literary analogy, that it was more potboiler than best-seller.
Perhaps it might have helped if I actually hadn't read the books as even with Lee's presence, the film doesn't quite match up to their page-turning excitement. It's also not helped by the less than dynamic playing of the Nayland Smith and Dr Petrie characters as Manchu's pursuers.
You just never really get the impression that anyone's in real danger and while the movie rattled along from location to location, there's not enough exciting action or dread threat displayed to really hold the viewer. I know it was the mid 60's when comic book colour was all the rage but I believe this film could have worked better if it had been darker in tone.
As for the playing Lee unsurprisingly comes off best even if he's lost some of his moustache somewhere, the rest of the cast however appear somewhat lightweight which again for me affected the balance of the film.
Still it was colourful and reasonably fast-moving but in the end I'd have to say, to coin a literary analogy, that it was more potboiler than best-seller.