The Fiendish Plot of Dr. Fu Manchu
Encyclopedia
The Fiendish Plot of Dr. Fu Manchu is a 1980 comedy film
, notable as the final film of Peter Sellers
, David Tomlinson
and John Le Mesurier
. Pre-production began with Richard Quine
as director. By the time the film entered production, Piers Haggard
had replaced him. Peter Sellers handled the re-shoots himself. Based on characters created by Sax Rohmer
, the film stars Sellers in the dual role of Fu Manchu
and Nayland Smith (he also appears in an uncredited cameo as a Mexican bandito). Released less than a month after his death, the film was a commercial and critical failure.
(which gives him extended life) after the original is accidentally destroyed by one of Fu Manchu minions.
When the diamond "The Star of Leningrad" is stolen by a clockwork spider from a Soviet exhibition in Washington D.C., the F.B.I. sends a pair of special agents to seek the assistance of Scotland Yard
as a card from Fu Manchu's organisation the Si-Fan has been left at the crime. Sir Roger Avery of the Yard feels this is a job for Fu's archnemesis, Sir Denis Nayland-Smith, now retired.
Nayland-Smith correctly surmises that Fu Manchu will steal the identical twin to the missing diamond that is held in the Tower of London
. Nayland-Smith also predicts that Fu will be thwarted by the tight security (several aged Beefeaters) at the Tower, then will kidnap Queen Mary
to gain the jewel. He recruits a woman police constable to impersonate the Queen and fool Fu's gang.
.
In addition to Sellers, the film features Sid Caesar
as FBI
agent Joe Capone, David Tomlinson
as Scotland Yard
Commissioner Sir Roger Avery, Simon Williams
as his bumbling nephew and Helen Mirren
as Police Constable Helen Rage (her performance is notable for her singing the Music Hall standard, "Daddy Wouldn't Buy Me a Bow Wow
").
Burt Kwouk
, Sellers' longtime co-star in The Pink Panther
films, makes a cameo appearance as the Fu Manchu minion who accidentally destroys the elixir vita, prompting the inside joke that Fu thinks he looks familiar (also a joke on the racist stereotype that Asians appear identical to Westerners). John Le Mesurier
has a small part in the film as Nayland-Smith's butler.
Unlike other Fu Manchu works, Fu's daughter and Nayland-Smith's friend Dr. Petrie do not appear in the film.
The Fiendish Plot of Dr. Fu Manchu is a 1980 comedy film
Comedy film
Comedy film is a genre of film in which the main emphasis is on humour. They are designed to elicit laughter from the audience. Comedies are mostly light-hearted dramas and are made to amuse and entertain the audiences...
, notable as the final film of Peter Sellers
Peter Sellers
Richard Henry Sellers, CBE , known as Peter Sellers, was a British comedian and actor. Perhaps best known as Chief Inspector Clouseau in The Pink Panther film series, he is also notable for playing three different characters in Dr...
, David Tomlinson
David Tomlinson
David Cecil MacAlister Tomlinson was an English film actor. He is primarily remembered for his roles as authority figure George Banks in Mary Poppins, fraudulent magician Professor Emelius Browne in Bedknobs and Broomsticks and as hapless antagonist Peter Thorndyke in The Love Bug.-Early life:Born...
and John Le Mesurier
John Le Mesurier
John Le Mesurier was a BAFTA Award-winning English actor. He is most famous for his role as Sergeant Arthur Wilson in the popular 1970s BBC comedy Dad's Army.-Career:...
. Pre-production began with Richard Quine
Richard Quine
Richard Quine was an American stage, film, and radio actor and film director.Quine was born in Detroit. He made his Broadway debut in the Jerome Kern/Oscar Hammerstein II musical Very Warm for May in 1939 and appeared in My Sister Eileen the following year...
as director. By the time the film entered production, Piers Haggard
Piers Haggard
Piers Inigo Haggard is a British film and television director, although he has worked mostly in the latter medium.He is the great grandnephew of H...
had replaced him. Peter Sellers handled the re-shoots himself. Based on characters created by Sax Rohmer
Sax Rohmer
Arthur Henry Sarsfield Ward , better known as Sax Rohmer, was a prolific English novelist. He is best remembered for his series of novels featuring the master criminal Dr...
, the film stars Sellers in the dual role of Fu Manchu
Fu Manchu
Dr. Fu Manchu is a fictional character introduced in a series of novels by British author Sax Rohmer during the first half of the 20th century...
and Nayland Smith (he also appears in an uncredited cameo as a Mexican bandito). Released less than a month after his death, the film was a commercial and critical failure.
Plot
The opening titles announce it is set "possibly around 1933." The story concerns the 168-year-old Fu Manchu, who must duplicate the ingredients to the elixir vitaeElixir of life
The elixir of life, also known as the elixir of immortality and sometimes equated with the philosopher's stone, is a legendary potion, or drink, that grants the drinker eternal life and or eternal youth. Many practitioners of alchemy pursued it. The elixir of life was also said to be able to create...
(which gives him extended life) after the original is accidentally destroyed by one of Fu Manchu minions.
When the diamond "The Star of Leningrad" is stolen by a clockwork spider from a Soviet exhibition in Washington D.C., the F.B.I. sends a pair of special agents to seek the assistance of Scotland Yard
Scotland Yard
Scotland Yard is a metonym for the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police Service of London, UK. It derives from the location of the original Metropolitan Police headquarters at 4 Whitehall Place, which had a rear entrance on a street called Great Scotland Yard. The Scotland Yard entrance became...
as a card from Fu Manchu's organisation the Si-Fan has been left at the crime. Sir Roger Avery of the Yard feels this is a job for Fu's archnemesis, Sir Denis Nayland-Smith, now retired.
Nayland-Smith correctly surmises that Fu Manchu will steal the identical twin to the missing diamond that is held in the Tower of London
Tower of London
Her Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress, more commonly known as the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, separated from the eastern edge of the City of London by the open space...
. Nayland-Smith also predicts that Fu will be thwarted by the tight security (several aged Beefeaters) at the Tower, then will kidnap Queen Mary
Mary of Teck
Mary of Teck was the queen consort of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Empress of India, as the wife of King-Emperor George V....
to gain the jewel. He recruits a woman police constable to impersonate the Queen and fool Fu's gang.
Cast
Sellers had previously done a 1955 Goon Show entitled The Terrible Revenge of Fred Fu-Manchu set in 1895. In the film his Fu insists friends call him "Fred" and that he had once been the groundsman at EtonEton College
Eton College, often referred to simply as Eton, is a British independent school for boys aged 13 to 18. It was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI as "The King's College of Our Lady of Eton besides Wyndsor"....
.
In addition to Sellers, the film features Sid Caesar
Sid Caesar
Isaac Sidney "Sid" Caesar is an Emmy award winning American comic actor and writer known as the leading man on the 1950s television series Your Show of Shows and Caesar's Hour, and to younger generations as Coach Calhoun in Grease and Grease 2.- Early life :Caesar was born in Yonkers, New York,...
as FBI
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
agent Joe Capone, David Tomlinson
David Tomlinson
David Cecil MacAlister Tomlinson was an English film actor. He is primarily remembered for his roles as authority figure George Banks in Mary Poppins, fraudulent magician Professor Emelius Browne in Bedknobs and Broomsticks and as hapless antagonist Peter Thorndyke in The Love Bug.-Early life:Born...
as Scotland Yard
Scotland Yard
Scotland Yard is a metonym for the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police Service of London, UK. It derives from the location of the original Metropolitan Police headquarters at 4 Whitehall Place, which had a rear entrance on a street called Great Scotland Yard. The Scotland Yard entrance became...
Commissioner Sir Roger Avery, Simon Williams
Simon Williams (actor)
Simon Williams is an English actor known for playing James Bellamy in the period drama Upstairs, Downstairs. Frequently playing upper-class roles, he is also known for playing Dr...
as his bumbling nephew and Helen Mirren
Helen Mirren
Dame Helen Mirren, DBE is an English actor. She has won an Academy Award for Best Actress, four SAG Awards, four BAFTAs, three Golden Globes, four Emmy Awards, and two Cannes Film Festival Best Actress Awards.-Early life and family:...
as Police Constable Helen Rage (her performance is notable for her singing the Music Hall standard, "Daddy Wouldn't Buy Me a Bow Wow
Daddy Wouldn't Buy Me a Bow Wow
"Daddy Wouldn’t Buy Me a Bow Wow" is a song written in 1892 by prolific English songwriter Joseph Tabrar.It was written for, and first performed in 1892 by, Vesta Victoria at the South London Palace, holding a kitten. The same year it was recorded by Silas Leachman for the North American Phonograph...
").
Burt Kwouk
Burt Kwouk
Burt Kwouk OBE , born Herbert Kwouk, is an English actor of Chinese descent, known for many television appearances and for his role as Cato in the Pink Panther films.-Career:...
, Sellers' longtime co-star in The Pink Panther
The Pink Panther
The Pink Panther is a series of comedy films featuring the bungling French police detective Jacques Clouseau that began in 1963 with the release of the film of the same name. The role was originated by, and is most closely associated with, Peter Sellers...
films, makes a cameo appearance as the Fu Manchu minion who accidentally destroys the elixir vita, prompting the inside joke that Fu thinks he looks familiar (also a joke on the racist stereotype that Asians appear identical to Westerners). John Le Mesurier
John Le Mesurier
John Le Mesurier was a BAFTA Award-winning English actor. He is most famous for his role as Sergeant Arthur Wilson in the popular 1970s BBC comedy Dad's Army.-Career:...
has a small part in the film as Nayland-Smith's butler.
Unlike other Fu Manchu works, Fu's daughter and Nayland-Smith's friend Dr. Petrie do not appear in the film.