Greetings And Salutations, and welcome to my review of Fenomenal And The Treasure Of Tutankamen; here's the breakdown of my ratings:
Story: 1.50
Direction: 1.00
Pace: 1.25
Acting: 1.25
Enjoyment: 1.25
TOTAL: 6.25 out of 10.00
Okay, to get my controversial comment out of the way Fenomenal 68 is better than Batman 66. Fenominal is how Batman should have been played and not with the manic campness that everybody loved and fondly remembers - myself included.
The writers chose to go down a more realistic avenue with their superhero, who is a millionaire, though not a playboy, and has a butler called...yep, you guessed it, Alfred. There are no super villains. The black hats in this action thriller are your exceptional geniuses who possess an inclination toward making easy money. In this case, it's the solid gold mask of King Tut. What engaged me was the amount of detail and twists intertwined in the narrative. The king's headpiece gets about more than a ten-dollar prostitute. It's like the playing card con of Chasing The Queen. You're never sure who holds the genuine mask and who the fake. It's a crime to test the world's greatest detective - Fenomenal. Another element I enjoyed was the lack of a costume. The Fenom doesn't wear a cape and cowl. He's dressed entirely in black - even his mask fully covers his face. It's reminiscent of Year-One Batman when Bruce was starting out.
The direction isn't extraordinary, but it surprisingly works well. Ruggero Deodato uses sharp cutting to speed up the tempo and add excitement to the fight scenes. And, when required, he slows it down a smidgen from a trot to a walk to build the tension. I would have delighted in a few more unconventional camera angles. The fight scene on the yacht could have benefitted from them. They would have helped to add extra interest to the audience.
The cast is okay. The performers are above-average in their portrayals, though I wouldn't have minded a tad more characterisation as they all appear a bit bland. It would have been good to see more greed, additional worry and panic, increased irritation, and greater joy.
Fenominal is a pleasure to watch: It's light and easy. There are also unintentional funny moments, such as the yacht fight at the opening. We are on board a small vessel, though it doesn't matter how many henchmen The Fenom hits, kicks, and throws overboard, they just keep coming. It's like a clown car at sea. I loved it. As I did the martial arts fight sequences. Once again, they are not brilliant, but they are entertaining. Because of such, I'd recommend Fenomenal And The Treasure Of Tutankamen for your viewing pleasure, if it is only once.
Now take off that daft King Tut mask and investigate my The Game Is Afoot, Holding Out For A Hero and Guilty Pleasures lists to see where I ranked Fenomenal And The Treasure Of Tutankamen.
Take Care & Stay Well.
