THE MASK OF FU-MANCHU (1932)
Label: Warner Archive
Region Code: Region-Free
Rating: Unrated
Duration: 68 Minutes 37 Minutes
Audio: English DTS-HD MA 2.0 Dual-Mono with Optional English Subtitles
Video: B&W 1080p HD Fullscreen (1.37:1)
Director: Charles Brabin
Cast: Boris Karloff, Myrna Loy, Lewis Stone, Lawrence Grant, Karen Morley, Charles Starrett, Jean Hersholt, David Torrence
The pre-code pulp adventure-horror The Mask of Fu-Manchu (1932), based on Sax Rohmer's same-titled novel, stars horror icon Boris Karloff in his first speaking role post Frankenstein, playing the diabolical oriental fiend Dr. Fu- Manchu. Be forewarned going in that this is a movie of it's era, being a "yellow peril" exploitation flick that is filled with unrelenting racist stereotypes and unflattering asian tropes. With that said, this is quite a raucous and pulpy adventure flick chock full terrifically fetching set design and lensing that combines a potpourri of campy oriental motifs and hard lit German Expressionist flourishes, with a terrific turn from Karloff as the comic book styled villain. In it evil Chinese scientist Dr. Fu-Manchu has learned of the tomb of Genghis Khan and desires to obtain the legendary Mongolian warlords scimitar and mask, to proclaim himself the reincarnation of Khan and to start a race war to eradicate white people off the face of the Earth, but he does not know the tomb's exact location.
The pre-code pulp adventure-horror The Mask of Fu-Manchu (1932), based on Sax Rohmer's same-titled novel, stars horror icon Boris Karloff in his first speaking role post Frankenstein, playing the diabolical oriental fiend Dr. Fu- Manchu. Be forewarned going in that this is a movie of it's era, being a "yellow peril" exploitation flick that is filled with unrelenting racist stereotypes and unflattering asian tropes. With that said, this is quite a raucous and pulpy adventure flick chock full terrifically fetching set design and lensing that combines a potpourri of campy oriental motifs and hard lit German Expressionist flourishes, with a terrific turn from Karloff as the comic book styled villain. In it evil Chinese scientist Dr. Fu-Manchu has learned of the tomb of Genghis Khan and desires to obtain the legendary Mongolian warlords scimitar and mask, to proclaim himself the reincarnation of Khan and to start a race war to eradicate white people off the face of the Earth, but he does not know the tomb's exact location.
Sir Denis Nayland Smith (Lewis Stone, Three Godfathers) of the British Secret Service teams-up with Egyptologist Sir Lionel Barton (Lawrence Grant, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde), who has discovered the tomb's location, to recover the relics before Fu Manchu, but before they embark on their secret archeology mission Fu-Manchu's henchmen, comically wrapped in mummy bandages, kidnap Barton from the British Museum after emerging from Egyptian sarcophagi, and and whisk him away to the baddie's lair hidden away in the Gobi Desert, subjecting him to the dreaded Torture of the Bell in an effort extract the location of the tomb.
Meanwhile Barton's daughter Sheila (Karen Morley, Dinner At Eight) decides to continue her father's work, taking his place on the expedition to the Gobi Desert, she and Smith are joined by her fiancé Terry Granville (Charles Starrett, The Durango Kid) and his associates, Dr. Von Berg (Jean Hersholt, Mark of the Vampire) and McLeod (David Torrence, Queen Christina). Excavating the tomb they recover the fabled scimitar and mask, but looking to rescue her father Sheila sends Terry with the sword and mask to Fu-Manchu's lair looking to exchange it for her father's life, both unaware that Smith has secretly created counterfeit copies of the relics, which when discovered by Fu-Manchu causes the death of Barton, while Terry himself is whipped by Manchu's
nymphomaniacal daughter Fah Lo See (Myrna Loy, The Thin Man) who absolutely seethes with unbridled pre-code sexual pleasure as the white-skinned Terry is whipped by black slaves, excitedly screaming "Faster! Faster! Faster!", it's quite something to see.
Karloff's sadistic scientist subject victims who end up at his lair to a form of mind-control derived from injections of a serum made not only of his own blood but that off a variety of venomous insects and reptiles, also subjecting his captives to a variety of delightfully camp tortures including a weighted seesaw crocodile pit, and a spiked contraption he refers to as the Room of the Slim Silver Fingers, which promises a horrific spiked death. The last ten minutes of the flick are quite a wild ride, with the villain about to sacrtifice virginal Sheila on an altar in front of his followers with the Khan scimitar, until the "heroic" white people free themselves and vanquish the asian-baddie and his minions by turning his own electric death-ray upon them.
Watching this one cannot help but cringe at the anti-asian sentiment throughout, it's certainly a product of its era, but as a campy comic book type of adventure flicks it is quite an entertaining watch. Loy and Karloff are camping it up quite nicely they know how ridiculous is and they really went for it. The exotic set design and striking visuals are terrific, and there are elements that made me think that John Carpenter must have been a fan of the is flick when he made Big Trouble in Little China.
Audio/Video: The Mask of Fu-Manchu (1932) arrives on Blu-ray from the Warner Archive in 1080p HD framed in the original 1.37:1 fullscreen aspect ratio. The pre-code pulp-classic has been lovingly restored, the black and white image showcases filmic grain throughout with pleasing texture and detail. Black levels are quite nice of not exactly true-black but grayscale and shadow detail look terrific. There are moments when the image clarity dips a little, looking slightly dupey in spots, but for the most part I thought it looked aces, and quite an improvement over the the previous DVD edition when it was included on the six-film Hollywood Legends of Horror Collection, which as of this release I am happy to report have now all been gorgeously upgraded onto Blu-ray from the Warner Archive.
Audio comes by way of English DTS-HD MA 2.0 dual-mono with optional English subtitles. The track is surprisingly clean for a nearly century old flick, it has an appropriately vintage sound to it, a bit boxy, but dialogue and the score come through quite nicely.
Extras includes an Audio Commentary by Greg Mank that does excellent working breaking down this pre-code yellow peril flick, plus a pair of black and white Merrie Melodies cartoons presented here in wonderful shape in HD, the 7-min Freddy the Freshman (1932) (6:54) and the 7-min The Queen Was in the Parlor (1932), bith from the same year that the feature was released.
Special Features:
- Audio Commentary by Greg Mank
- Classic Cartoons: Freddy the Freshman (1932) (6:54), The Queen Was in the Parlor (1932) (6:46)
Screenshots from the Warner Archive Blu-ray:
Extras:
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