The Face of Fu Manchu

Alternate titles : Dr. Fu Manchu's Secret, Fu Manchu - Master of Horror, The Mask of Fu Manchu.

Tagline : "Obey Fu Manchu, Or Every Living Thing Will Die!"

Set in 1920's London (actually, 1960s Dublin) this adaptation of the gritty old detective thrillers by author Sax Rohmer, stars a heavily made up Christopher Lee as the films titular villain who, having escaped execution in China, has set up a hideout in London with his equally evil daughter Lin Tang (played by chinese actress Tsai Chin).

When a number of prominent scientists go missing, it catches the attention of Scotland Yard's Nayland Smith (Nigel Green), who suspects Fu Manchu may be behind it. But when he also learns that one of the scientists had obtained a supply of rare Blackhill Poppy seeds that dissapeared along with him, which could be used to make poison gas, he realises something sinister is definitely afoot and it becomes a race against time to find out where he is and stop him.

Secret underground lairs, weapons of mass destruction, exotic villains, elaborate executions, car chases and numerous fight scenes, this was in many ways similar to those old Sherlock Holmes films. It even has a Doctor Watson type sidekick named Petrie (played by Howard Marion-Crawford). But differs substantially in tone and style, being considerably darker and with the focus being more on the villain, than the hero.

Indeed, there's a couple of death scenes that would put a James Bond villain to shame and the scene where Fu Manchu wipes out an entire village, along with the subsequent aftermath, showing bodies lying dead in the street certainly makes for grim viewing.

Not the sort of film that could be made today, partly because of the negative stereotyping of Chinese people, but mostly because of having Christopher Lee, and several other English actors, being made up to look Chinese, which is a strict no-no in today's politically sensitive times. This is, never the less, a thoroughly entertaining dark thriller though, with Christopher Lee at his menacing best.

Definitely one for Christoper Lee fans.

Overall Marks : 6/10.

Terrifying Trivia

• The story was not actually based on any of the original Fu Manchu publications, as Producer Harry Alan Towers only purchased the rights to use the characters, not the stories. As it was cheaper just to write a new story around them.
• The eye prosthetics worn by Christoper Lee to make him look more Chinese, were so heavy and awkward he couldn't look up or down and could only slightly move his head left and right.
• Dublin, Ireland was chosen for filming as it looked more like 1920's London than London actually did at the time.
• The film's budget was £150,000, which was an extremely low amount, even by 1960s standards.
• German actors Joachim Fuchsberger, Karin Dor and Walter Rilla were cast in the film at the request of the German distributors, who were co-financing the production.
• The Director couldn't afford to clear the streets whilst filming the car chase, but the production happened to co-incide with the repatriation of the body of Irish nationalist Roger Casement, who was hanged for treason in England in 1916. As he knew everone in Dublin would attending that event, that left the streets around Dublin docks free for him to film there.
• The scene during the car chase, where Fu Manchu's car cuts in front of the train was shot outside the old Kingsbridge (now called Heuston) station goods yard, in Dublin, using the train that ran between the yard and the nearby Guinness factory.
• Although playing strong supporting roles in many films, such as "Zulu", "Jason and the Argonauts" and "The Ipcriss File", this was the only film in which Nigel Green has played the lead actor (the role of Nayland Smith was recast for the sequels).
• The Essex village that Fu Manchu wipes out with poison gas was actually the village of Skerries, 18 miles North of Dublin. The locals doubled as extras for the scene where everyone has dropped dead.
• The courtyard of Kilmainham Jail in Dublin was used for both the Chinese Prison during the prologue, as well doubling for Tibetan castle during the finale. The film makers however, inadvertantly upset many of the locals whilst filming there, as a number of Republican prisoners from various historical Irish civil wars were buried in the grounds and the people weren't happy about them covering the place with straw and having livestock roaming around, when they decorated it to look like a castle, which even prompted a threatening letter from the IRA. They did however thoroughly clean up and restore everything after filming.
• The film makers decided to market this as an adventure film, rather than a dark thriller, as they thought it would have broader appeal to audiences. As a result the UK film censors, the BBFC, trimmed several scenes before passing it with a U certificate. Which annoyed Christopher Lee greatly, who had expected something much darker and grittier. The film was passed uncut in 1991 with a PG certificate.

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