The Fiendish Plot of Dr. Fu Manchu

Jeez... come on, you guys! Whew!

This movie's always been a childhood favorite. And what about Helen Mirren? Or about that crazy plant getting shot? That always freaked me out! That little gasp, and then it starts dying...? Or how about that mechanical spider? Those electric shocks Fu Manchu had to do? And the end! You don't see sort of win/lose endings like that.

No, this movie's always had a special place in my heart. Mainly, it's a film best approached with a childlike perspective. No, it's not a Great Film, nor Masterpiece Cinema, but there is something about it....

When I saw Dr.Fu began to sing before ending,I almost fell off the couch.I couldn't soon believe this is Sellers' last work.As a matter of fact,this is not a masterpiece at all.But I think this is not so bad as everyone says.I do like some gags and comic parts of this film.For example,the sequence of our familiar Cato (Burt Kwouk) who spills that mysterious medicine.Or the sequence of young delightful Robert (Simon Williams) who smashes up the mechanical spider,which is Nayland's favorite.Both scenes are done with good timing enough to make me laugh. Details are also fun;the lawn mower,two-seater bicycle,balloon house,and so on.Nonsense gags are almost surreal.If you see this film carefully (and patiently),you will become to love it.Actually I can't hate it,like mother who loves her misshapen child.

Well, it's not a masterpiece, of course, but it's far from the worst film ever made, as some of the more OTT reviewers claim. For those of us for whom Sellers is forever the arch-Goon, there is much to delight here, and the spirit of Spike Milligan hovers over the script, whether or not he had anything to do with it. Accusations of racism are quite absurd. If you really want to see a gold plated 100% cringeworthy stinker, I suggest you look no further than The Spy Who Shagged Me, beside which Fu Manchu is a real work of genius.

Like a couple of other reviewers here, I'm baffled as to why this movie is so lambasted. It is not the gut-busting laugh getter, but then it's not supposed to be. I found it to be rather tongue in cheek fun, not unlike a silly James Bond film (when Connery was doing it still) and entertaining for the detective movie buff like myself. I remember seeing it with my wife. And the ending is silly and funny I thought. Sure it's not a great film like "Being There" but it is not a horrible film to go out on as some professional reviewers have said. I really liked the exaggerated Chinese accent Sellers gives his Fu Manchu (Which I would imitate for my wife's amusement often) and the funny bit about the aging and somewhat out there Nayland Smith pushing a lawnmower over the carpet in the "home" that helped him think. And so to you Nay(land) sayers out there, I say FU! I had a good time with this addition to detective fiction satire.

OK! Maybe it is not the best film making but it is fun, and is the last hurrah for one of the great comic actors of all time. A gentle spoof of all of those Fu Manchu films over the years,(and frankly better than many of them) It contained many of the hallmarks of Sellers films such as playing multiple roles (Fu Manchu and nemesis Nayland Smith) Using comic actors of similar stripe (Sid Caesar) re-uniting with Bert Kwouk (his man-servant in many of the Pink Panther movies.) This was also the farewell film of actor David Tomlinson and John Le Messeur both of whom retired from films after this. The movie is a fun romp with a mix of the absurd slapstick and the witty dialog of the characters. One of my favorite lines happens after a line of dacoit assassins appear in front of Fu Manchu and he says "you can't fool me with a cheap cinematic trick." This was very fitting farewell to a great comic genius.