Kitty B
As I'm a Peter Sellers fan, I'm biased to like it. It is truly a bizarre film. I was shocked to see it was made in 1980 as it felt much more like a movie from the 60s.. Peter Sellers gives his usual humorous slant in his roles particularly his Dr Fu Manchu. He delivers a very conservative, low key foil as the retired British agent sought out to thwart the evil doctor. I always enjoy his performances and he goes full ham as the wacky doctor. I particularly liked when he electrocuted himself to keep him going. The Asian racist slurs are hard to take, but it shows how different things are nowadays, at least as far as what gets on the screen. It was odd seeing Helen Mirren in this.
Rated 3/5 Stars •
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
09/25/22
Full Review
Audience Member
I saw this as a kid. I loved the line "I hope you like tea!" "Why?" "Cuz we are gonna be up to our ass in it!". An accurate thought when an American goes to the U.K.! You have to like Sellers and like old weird movies like this. The humor is quirky and offbeat. My kids would find it a tiresome bore and would not last 15 minutes. But I just watched it again and liked it. Is it a laugh a minute affair? Certainly not. But I didn't doze off either. If you, like me, grew up with UHF TV and old Laurel and Hardy, Three Stooges, Abbot and Costello, Rat Pack and the like, you'll dig it. It's like the old Doctor Who serials compared to the New Who with Tennant and the new guys. I love the old stuff and the new, but my kids only care for the New Who. They find the old serials too slow and plodding. And this movie is just that. Slow and plodding with several jokes that many would find cringe worthy. But I enjoy cringe worthy comedy. So while I like this movie, your mileage may vary some!
Rated 3/5 Stars •
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
02/01/23
Full Review
Audience Member
The first five minutes featuring a side-splittingly funny gag (I won't say what). Nothing that follows is anywhere near as entertaining. Helen Mirren is the best thing about this.
Rated 1/5 Stars •
Rated 1 out of 5 stars
03/18/18
Full Review
Audience Member
Peter Sellers plays the titular character, Fu Manchu, a Chinese evil genius who is in the process of stealing all the world's largest diamonds. It's 1933 and Fu Manchu is 168 years old, and uses the diamonds to create an elixir to keep him alive. Some funny, rather offensive things wouldn't make it in a Hollywood film nowadays, but overall slow and uneven.
Rated 3/5 Stars •
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
02/02/23
Full Review
bill t
Yes, this is Peter Sellers final movie, but no, it's not as horrid as they say. Heaven knows, there are Christopher Lee Fu Manchu movies that are worse than this, but there are definite problems. The characters are a wee bit too goofy, and wtf is up with that ending.
Rated 3/5 Stars •
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
03/30/23
Full Review
Audience Member
And so it came to this, this proved to be Peter Sellers' final film, straight off the critical success of Being There (1979). This followed on from The Prisoner of Zenda (1979), and gave Sellers a chance to play more than one character with this spoof of Sax Rohmer's books. But it ends up being quite embarrassing and tragic, with a lacklustre script with jokes that have been done before and much better too. In the 1930's, Dr. Fu Manchu (Sellers) is celebrating his 168th birthday, but his age-regressing elixir vitae is spilt, Fu has to come up with a plan to make a new batch of the elixir. He sends his minions across the world, to Washinton to steal the Star of Leningrad diamond, and then to London to steal the George V diamond. FBI agents Joe Capone (Sid Caesar) and Peter Williams (Steve Franken) go to London to coax Dennis Nayland Smith (Sellers again) out to retirement to stop Fu Manchu's plan. Fearing the Royal Family might be in danger, Smith and Scotland Yard send in Alice Rage (Helen Mirren) to impersonate Queen Mary, but she ends up becoming enamoured with Fu Manchu, and ends up aiding in his plan. Some of it looks good, but it's sad that Sellers ended his career on this one, seeing him as Elvis is just embarrassing, and not even support from David Tomlinson, John Le Mesurier, Burt Kwouk and Clive Dunn can save it. Piers Haggard (Blood on Satan's Claw) started directing the film, but Sellers fired him and took over. Says it all really.
Rated 2/5 Stars •
Rated 2 out of 5 stars
02/05/23
Full Review
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