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in: MST3K Episodes, Season 3, Foreign Film,
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MST3K 323 - The Castle of Fu Manchu

Revision as of 16:41, 23 February 2021 by Darth Prefect (Message Wall | contribs)
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“ “Look at this shot. They should never have let Shatner direct!” ”


The Movie

Synopsis

File:Fufilm1.jpg

Christopher Lee in Castle of Fu Manchu

England, 1969. The fiend Fu Manchu (Christopher Lee) demands "obedience to his orders". Fu has captured Professor Heracles, inventor of a super weapon - crystals made from opium that can render people unconscious and/or turn the entire ocean into ice.

Fu broadcasts his demands to the world. Scotland Yard intercepts the message and puts agent Nayland Smith (Richard Greene) on the case.

To get opium, Fu prepares to capture the governor's mansion in Istanbul, where there is a huge supply. He joins forces with drug kingpin Omar Pashu after sending daughter Lin to arrange the deal. Their men storm the castle and behead the governor. Fu then double-crosses Pashu by machine-gunning his men and taking his Russian girlfriend Lisa hostage.

Fufilm2

Meanwhile, Professor Heracles lies abed afflicted with what appears to be congestive heart failure. He's dying, but hasn't surrendered the formula for the crystals, so he must be kept alive. Fu decides to get Heracles a new heart, so he abducts an unwilling donor and kidnaps Heracle's doctors Kestler and Ingrid to do the transplant. 

Fu commands Kestler do the transplant or Ingrid will die. Kestler submits, and the operation begins. When the operation is over, the doctors are then confined to a dungeon.

Omar Pashu goes to Fu's castle to rescue Lisa where Lin dispatches him with a knitting needle, but not before Fu reveals his grandiose escape plan, complete with the "Entrance to Eternity" - a tunnel with a mechanism for releasing Fu's water-freezing weapon.

Fufilm4

Agent Smith swims to the castle, races up the stairs and down to the dungeon. Breaking into the control room, he signals London to send a warning to the Bosporus (which Fu has threatened to freeze), whereupon Fu releases the crystals and torrents of water into the escape tunnel.

Kestler blows open his cell door with "explosive acid" he found in the operating room. Smith storms the dungeon, liberating Lisa, and the two of them seize Heracles and drag him out the front door.

Doctors Kestler and Ingrid race out the escape passage. Lisa runs back inside the tunnel to rescue the now-dead Pashu and is drowned.

Fufilm5

Somehow Fu's weapon system is reversed, blowing up the castle. He leaves with a warning that he'll be back.

Information

  • The last feature of Howard Marion-Crawford.
  • The dam bursting scene is footage taken from the Dirk Bogarde film Campbell's Kingdom (1957). Bogarde is in the green checked shirt and Stanley Baker in the red shirt, both are recognizable in this footage.
  • The fifth and final Christopher Lee Fu Manchu film.
  • A sixth film was contracted, but due to this movie's poor box office performance and critical reaction it was canceled.
  • All of the footage at the beginning of the movie featuring a large ocean liner striking an iceberg and sinking is stock footage from the famed British film A Night to Remember (1958) about the sinking of the Titanic, directed by Roy Ward Baker.
  • Although credits state that locations were "filmed in Istanbul and surroundings", most of them correspond to Barcelona (Spain).
  • Richard Greene's second appearance as Fu Manchu's nemesis, Nayland Smith of Scotland Yard.
  • Christopher Lee (Dr. Fu Manchu), Tsai Chin (Lin Tang) and Howard Marion-Crawford (Dr. Petrie) are the only actors to appear in all five Fu Manchu films.

The Episode

Host Segments

Fuhost1

The SOL crew sings the Satellite of Love Marching Song

Prologue: The Satellite of Love crew sings the Satellite of Love Marching Song, a jaunty, cheerful, happy tune about their situation. All is well.

Segment One (Invention Exchange): The crew celebrates their successful performance, the Bots create a new Long-Distance Telephone Transducer when Joel forgets the invention and re-presents the Big Head. The Mads create a Stinky Bomb that turns anyone into Joe Besser and present another stinky bomb... the movie.

Segment Two: Crow tries to present his sardonic editorial on the "Miss Saigon Syndrome", but the pain of the movie makes it very difficult. Crow cannot take the pain any longer and then he and Tom Servo both break down crying. The Mads are delighted with the data.

Fuhost2

TV's Frank as Joe Besser

Segment Three: The crew tries to do the "Shriner Flying Carpet" sketch, only for Servo to have another emotional breakdown. The Mads order out for a victory dinner.

Segment Four: Joel tries to cheer up the extremely depressed Bots by explaining who Fu Manchu really is via artist renderings, only for Joel to succumb to the horror of the film and have his own emotional breakdown. The Mads celebrate with pie.

Segment Five: The spirit of the SOL crew is utterly broken. In an attempt to read a fan letter, the pain is so appalling that Joel and the Bots have yet another emotional breakdown. In a show of power, the Mads toast to their triumph. Joel then challenges them to riff the film themselves, and the Mads fail miserably. The SOL crew claims victory.

Fuhost3

Crow reads his editorial

Stinger: A castle guard falls to ninja-like guys.

MST3K cast

Production

  • This is the fourth and final appearance of the Big Head. It previously appeared in three consecutive episodes: Star Force: Fugitive Alien II as Joel's Invention Exchange, War of the Colossal Beast during segment 3, and The Unearthly during segment 1 (as part of the mess flashback, where it wasn't actually worn).
  • The opening song was written by Michael J. Nelson and Kevin Murphy. It is loosely based on the theme song for The Funny Company.
  • This episode shows the host and the Bots in the most severe and prolonged state of emotional distress caused by any of the films they were sent by the Mads.

Callbacks

Obscure References

  • "Kinda like a Corvair, huh?"

The Chevrolet Corvair significanty declined in popularity after Ralph Nader singled it out for criticism in his book Unsafe at Any Speed.

  • "Big wheel keep on turning."

Lyrics from the song "Proud Mary" written by John Fogarty of Creedence Clearwater Revival. Tina Turner recorded a popular cover as well.

  • "Now it's Adventures in Paradise."

Adventures in Paradise is a TV series which ran from 1959 until 1962. The program starred Gardner McKay as Adam Troy, the captain of the schooner Tiki III, which sailed the South Pacific looking for passengers and adventure.

  • "Oh, he's Kool Fu Moe Gee!"

A reference to old-school rapper Kool Moe Dee.

  • "Castle of Fu Manchu, where you eat square hamburgers with chopsticks!"

The fast food chain White Castle specializes in small, square hamburgers.

  • "Titles by Peter Max!"

Peter Max was a commercially successful pop artist during the 1960s.

  • "I'm here for the Old Gringo audition!"

Old Gringo is a 1989 film about the Mexican Revolution, featuring Gregory Peck in one of his last roles.

  • "It kinda looks like a NOVA special on conception, doesn't it?"

NOVA is a science documentary series broadcast on PBS.

  • "Istanbul was Constantinople..."

Quoted from the novelty song "Istanbul (Not Constantinople)", which was re-popularized by They Might Be Giants.

  • "We're two ships passing in the, uh, day."

Probably a reference to the 1983 song "Two Ships Passing In The Night" by Dionne Warwick.

  • "All we are is dust in the wind, man."

This line is delivered in the same manner as Ted Logan (played by Keanu Reeves) in the 1989 film Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure. The time-traveling Bill and Ted impart some philosophy to Socrates, using lyrics from the 1977 Kansas song "Dust in the Wind" (though Ted calls the philosopher "dude", not "man").

  • "'Scuse me while I kiss the sky."

Lyrics from the 1967 song "Purple Haze" by Jimi Hendrix.

  • "I have often walked down this street before."

Lyrics from "On the Street Where You Live" from the 1956 Broadway musical My Fair Lady.

  • "Boy! Could you tell me what day it is?" "Why it's Christmas day, sir."

A reference to the ending of A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens: 

“What’s to-day, my fine fellow?” said Scrooge.

“To-day!” replied the boy. “Why, Christmas Day.”
  • "Oh, Mrs. Peel, we're needed!"

John Steed's catchphrase from the 1960s British TV series The Avengers.

  • "Bob Hope IS The Mechanic!"

The Mechanic is a 1972 thriller film starring Charles Bronson as a hit man.

  • "Anatolia!" "East of Java!"

A play on the movie Krakatoa, East of Java. Anatolia, present day Turkey, is located West of Java, present day Indonesia.

  • "Would you like one of our Watchtowers?"

The Watchtower is a magazine published by the Jehovah's Witnesses.

  • "Only YOU can prevent desk fires."

“Remember... Only YOU can prevent forest fires.” was Smokey Bear's slogan from 1947–2001 for the Wildfire Prevention Campaign.

  • "Miss Jane Pittman!"

The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman is a novel in which a 110-year-old African-American woman recounts the events of her life. It was made into an acclaimed made-for-TV movie in 1974.

  • "David Bowie! From The Hunger!"

The Hunger is a 1983 erotic horror film in which rock musician David Bowie played a vampire.

  • "What is this? Kirlian photography?"

Kirlian photography is a photographic technique that some people believe constitutes proof of the existence of auras.

  • "You must kill Kurtz. Terminate with extreme prejudice."

The order given to Martin Sheen's character in Apocalypse Now.

  • "Frank Booth."

The name of Dennis Hopper's character in the movie Blue Velvet.

  • "They're snipe hunting!"

A snipe hunt is a type of practical joke that often involves sending the person on the receiving end to "find" a nonexistent animal or object.

  • "Like the ninja version of Days of Heaven!"

Days of Heaven is a 1978 romantic period drama film directed by Terrence Malick.

  • "Yes, dear! I'm doing it, dear!"

An imitation of John Cleese's character from the TV comedy Fawlty Towers in one of his exasperated moments.

  • "Don't smoke."

A reference to an anti-smoking PSA that actor Yul Brynner filmed shortly before his death from lung cancer and had aired posthumously, in which he said "I'm dead now. Don't smoke." One of Brynner's notable physical characteristics was his completely bald head, like the man on screen.

  • "This is the trickle-down theory of plots!"

A reference to trickle-down economics, a controversial theory that formed the basis of President Ronald Reagan's fiscal policies.

  • "Fu Manchu will be back in Sweet Sweet..., oh, who the hell cares?"

A reference to the "James Bond will return in..." taglines that frequently appear during the closing credits of James Bond movies, and to the blaxploitation film Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song.

  • "It's Audrey Hepburn in Charade."

Charade was a 1963 movie starring Audrey Hepburn. It later became a RiffTrax presentation.

  • "Women, children, spacemen, Indians, and sort of idealized representations of 16th century Flemish merchants first."

A reference to a Monty Python sketch wherein the crew of a sinking ship don whatever costumes they can find in an attempt to sneak onto the lifeboats, forcing the captain to constantly revise the list of who is allowed to board first.

  • "Not the fish, the flash!"

In the Marx Brothers comedy Animal Crackers, Chico asks Harpo for a flashlight (or "flash") but Harpo keeps giving him different things that sound like "flash".

Video releases

CastleFuMan

MST3K DVD Cover


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