The Brides of Fu Manchu (1966) User Reviews

Compact little thriller harmed by last minute cost-saving measures.

[bella-6 · 6/10 · 24 February 1999]

The second film in producer Harry Alan Towers' Fu Manchu series is the only one to be filmed entirely in England, and went before the cameras only one month after "The Face of Fu Manchu" premiered in the USA. This compact little thriller is harmed by some last-minute cost saving measures, made in response to the disappointing boxoffice returns of the first film. It was not filmed in cinemascope and was processed in eastmancolor, the cheaper cousin of technicolor. The resulting film is dark and actually ugly-looking at times; its predominant color is washed-out red.

Choosing to emphasize the sexual aspects of his story, Towers arranged an international beauty contest to find the world's most beautiful women to play the title roles. The contest, held after the film was already finished, was a publicity ploy to generate interest in the film as it sat on the shelf for almost one year before release. The "brides" were actually actresses and models, cast through standard agencies and for their willingness to appear in nude scenes for the racier European version.

A lesser film than "Face", "Brides" is still an acceptable diversion, especially considering the nosedive the series would take after this. It would be director Don Sharp's last film in the series, and his considerable contribution would become evident after his departure.

Passable sequel with Christopher Lee as megalomaniac and sadist Chinese

[ma-cortes · 6/10 · 24 February 2011]

Second entry in Fu Manchu-Christopher Lee series set in London and based on Sax Rohmer's characters . At the film there are action, adventures, thrills, sadism and atmospheric outdoors filmed in London . Produced , as always, in average budget by Harry Allan Towers and also written under pseudonym of Peter Breck . Christopher Lee returns in this second chapter as the evil powerful Fu Manchu , the ominous genius who doesn't give up easily, and is out to destroy world or bent on conquering it . This time has designed a fantastic scheme , kidnapping scientific's daughters (Marie Versini , Carole Gray , among others) forcing them to develop a deadly ray gun . The beautiful girls are tortured by Fumanchu and his nasty daughter . Inspector Nayland Smith of Scotland Yard Nayland is his perennial adversary and arch-nemesis , he takes the center of attention when undergoes the dangerous mission. When Nayland Smith is assigned the case along with his assistant Dr. Petrie(Howard Marion Crawford) go into the action . Nayland Smith enlists the help a German scientist named Franz (Heinz Drache) against evil-doer emperor Fu.

This is a bizarre blending of thriller , suspense , action , intrigue and fantastic adventure . This exciting , diverting picture is full of Chinese killers, British adventurers , abducted scientists and megalomaniac villains . Christopher Lee with his usual stoic acting as Fu displays efficiently his abilities and killing mercilessly people . Fine 1920s atmosphere with good sets and old vehicles . Not as nice as ¨Face of Fumanchu¨-also by Don Sharp- still amusing and entertaining. Good performance by Douglas Wilmer as Nyland Smith who in previous and subsequent episodes was interpreted by Nigel Green , and Richard Greene , as always supported by Dr. Petri from ministry of Interior played by Howard Marion Crawford . The villain T Sai Chin stand out as Fu Manchu's daughter . International and cosmopolitan cast formed by European actors from diverse countries as British as Douglas Wilmer ,Rupert Davies , Carole Gray ; German as Heinz Drache , Haralz Leipnitz ; French as Marie Versini , Roger Hanin ; Chinese as Eric Young and Burt Kwouk who played the Peter Sellers's contender in Pink Panther series.

The best installments were ¨Face of Fu Manchu(1965, Don Sharp)¨, and ¨Brides of Fu Manchu( 1966, Don Sharp)¨ , followed by the inferior ¨Vengeance of Fu Manchu (1967 by Jeremy Summers ) and most critics felt the outing ¨Blood of Fumanchu¨ was one of the weakest entries along with ¨The castle of Fu Manchu¨, both of them directed by Jess Frank with similar casting , plenty of stock-shots and a Z-series style. Rating : 5,5 , average .

Is Fu a terrorist? Of course!

[Space_Lord · 5/10 · 25 May 2005]

I love these old movies that were made when the words 'politically' and 'correct' were never used in the same sentence together. It is a bygone age of cinema where it was as simple as 'he's the good guy, that's the bad guy, sit back and be entertained'. Once again Christopher Lee absolutely owns the film whenever he's on the screen, such is the attention the man commands. Fu is a diabolical genius, he would probably be branded a terrorist in today's times. He has abducted the beautiful daughters of some of the world's prominent political figures and is using them to manipulate world politics. It's up to the equally nutty British cop Nayland Smith to cross swords with Fu (once again) and stop the yellow peril!! Not as good as 'The Face of Fu Manchu' but enjoyable nonetheless.

Lee is terrific in this entertaining sequel to 'The Face Of Fu Manchu'.

[Infofreak · 25 April 2004]

This is the sequel to 'The Face Of Fu Manchu'. Once again Harry Alan Towers is the writer/producer, Don Sharp is the director, and Christopher Lee plays the fiendish Dr Fu Manchu, criminal mastermind. Fu Manchu's arch enemy Nayland Smith is played this time around by Douglas Wilmer ('The Vampire Lovers'), replacing Nigel Green. I miss Green but Wilmer is pretty good and Lee is terrific as always. Smith's Watson-like sidekick Dr. Petrie is once again played by Howard Marion-Crawford, and Tsai Chin returns as Fu Manchu's evil daughter Lin Tang. Horror buffs will get a kick out of seeing Heinz Dracher ('Circus Of Fear') as Franz and Rupert Davies ('Witchfinder General') as Jules Merlin. Also keep an eye out for Burt "Kato" Kwouk as Fu Manchu's assistant Feno. The plot concerns Fu Manchu's development of a death ray with which he plans to dominate the world. He kidnaps beautiful girls from various countries who are the daughters of prominent scientists or politicians to force them to cooperate. But Nayland Smith (who is kind of Sherlock Holmes to Fu Manchu's Moriarty) is soon onto his scheme and it becomes a race against time to stop Fu Manchu from taking over the world. I always thought that Sax Rhomer's Fu Manchu was a terrific villain, but in these politically correct times it's unlikely we'll see him return to our movies screens. Even the recent comic adaptation 'The League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen' left his character out. Lee makes a perfect Fu Manchu even if he is sometimes let down by a mundane script and budgetary limitations. 'The Brides Of Fu Manchu' is just as entertaining as 'The Face Of Fu Manchu', so if you enjoyed the first movie you'll have fun watching this one. There were three more movies in the series and it is generally thought that each was progressively worse than the last, so proceed with caution...

Better dead than wed

[TheLittleSongbird · 5/10 · 13 April 2019]

The main attractions of 'The Brides of Fu Manchu' are to see all the Fu Manchu films with Christopher Lee and Lee himself, to see how he fares as this fiendish character. Have always loved Lee and he was/is rightly considered a legend. So charismatic and imposing with one of the most immediately distinctive voices for anybody anywhere, he is reason enough to see anything that he starred or appeared in regardless of their overall quality (and not every film he did was good).

Do feel that 'The Brides of Fu Manchu' fits under that not particularly good but watchable category. The first of four sequels, all inferior to the entertaining first film 'The Face of Fu Manchu', it is for me, and quite a number of others it seems, the best of the sequels or at least the least bad. One can see a decline in quality compared to the first film, a decline that got worse with each succeeding film, there are a good deal of problems and it is one of those films that are tricky to rate and review. But at the same time it is oddly entertaining and watchable.

While 'The Face of Fu Manchu' is a much better-looking film, 'The Brides of Fu Manchu' does have style and eerie atmosphere in especially the lighting. The sets are reasonably well designed. It doesn't look too awful considering its low production costs while, due to incomplete-feeling editing and some erratic photography, hardly being visual refinement (it is though compared to what came later in the series). Didn't find it a dull film at first and while the film is silly some of it is entertaining silliness in alternative to exhausting. Don Sharp returns as director and does ably if not as skillfully as before.

It's some of the cast that help elevate 'The Brides of Fu Manchu' from what could have been a mess with a few merits to just about watchable. Lee as one would expect is a powerful presence throughout, though is underused which is something that great actors like Lee should never be. Douglas Wilmer is no Nigel Green, but is a more than serviceable substitute and actually comes over quite well. Meanwhile Tsai Chin is deliciously nasty in her role.

Conversely, 'The Brides of Fu Manchu' did lack suspense and the silliness increasingly went overboard from personal opinion. Some of the film did get tedious in pace and with the torture/sadism getting increasingly gratuitous at the expense of any genuine tension and suspense and some of it felt repetitive. The music had haunting moments but generally intruded too much and didn't really fit.

Ending was not a surprise, could see it coming from miles away, and felt rushed. The script was truly mundane and a tonal muddle from trying to include too much and not doing enough with any of it, also didn't flow very well. The rest of the cast have little to do and struggle to do anything with what they're given. The tension would have been more if the abducted girls' roles and acting weren't so limited and one-dimensional in a way that any genuine fear and desperation is lost.

Overall, has a lot of problems but the best, or least bad, of the sequels in a series where the only good film is the first 'The Face of Fu Manchu'. 5/10

"Not bad as sequels go."

[jamesraeburn2003 · 7/10 · 29 July 2005]

Evil Oriental mastermind Fu Manchu (CHRISTOPHER LEE) abducts ten beautiful girls from around the world whose fathers are distinguished scientists and engineers. He then forces them to construct a "death ray", which generates phenomenal energy through radio waves. First he uses his new weapon to destroy "The Windsor Castle", an ocean liner, which was carrying several VIP's in order to show the world the extent of the damage he could do unless his demands are met. His next intended target is London's "St Paul's Cathedral" where an international arms conference is to take place. Nayland Smith (DOUGLAS WILMER) must locate his arch enemy's new installation and destroy the weapon, but in such a way that the lives of the girls will not be threatened.

THE BRIDES OF FU MANCHU was the first sequel to the popular FACE OF... (1965), which went into production at the legendary Bray studios (once the home of the Hammer horror factory) on 12 January 1966 while its predecessor had barely completed its run of the UK's cinemas. The film also came with a huge publicity stunt, in which Lee would travel around different countries in Europe and select ten suitable girls (not necessarily an actress) to be Fu Manchu's brides in the film.

THE BRIDES OF FU MANCHU is in no way as stylish as its predecessor, but its not bad as sequels go with the James Bond style plot carrying a little more weight than any of its subsequent successors. Director Don Sharp was wisely retained in the director's chair along with Cinematographer Ernest Steward whose lighting did so much for the first film. Between them they still brilliantly recreate the period atmosphere of 1920's London giving it a Conan Doyleish edge. The main problem with the film is that the script places more emphasis on torture and sadism here (one of the faults in subsequent entries) like when Fu Manchu forces one of the girls (in a state of trance) to throw another into his snake pit so the light-heartedness of the original is gone. A more explicit version filmed for overseas audiences apparently exists and Douglas Wilmer who was very popular on British television at the time as Sherlock Holmes is a disappointing substitute for Nigel Green as Nayland Smith.

In summary, though by no means a perfect film, The Brides Of Fu Manchu is still the last of the good Fu Manchu's. From this point on the series was to sadly degenerate into shambling nonsense with lacklustre scripts, lower budgets and poor overall execution.

Mediocre...and for this series, that's very good!

[planktonrules · 5/10 · 3 March 2011]

The Fu Manchu series starring Christopher Lee is a very frustrating set of five films. That's because although the story idea overall is pretty cool, the films were highly uneven and sometimes pretty dreadful. I think that the films suffered from two main problems. First, a 6'5" English actor is not the best person to play a fiendish Chinese man--this is obvious to everyone but the producers. Second, the film makers decided, after a few promising outings, to let lemurs write the rest of the series. I kid you not.... LEMURS! The final two films were, to put it bluntly, complete rubbish.

The second film, "The Brides of Fu Manchu", begins with a brief summary of events from the first film--showing clips of the highlights and letting the viewer see that the evil Fu Manchu did NOT die in the last film--even though it sure looked like he had! It seems that the plot is very familiar--one that was used in some of the other Manchu films. The evil dude needs the help of a scientist so he does what you'd expect--kidnap, torment and threaten scientists' families to get their cooperation. And, once again, the hero, Sir Nayland Smith (Douglas Wilmer) is out to thwart the evil plan.

While this film is a lot like later films in the series, it is pretty good. However, like I noticed in many of the other Fu films, there really isn't that much of the bad guy in the film. Often you see his underlings or daughter. If I had Christopher Lee on hand, I sure would have put him in the movie a lot more! Overall, watchable and reasonably well made--even with its silly emphasis on hypnosis--the sort that NEVER could happen in real life. However, while it's pretty mediocre, just wait...the series will start to fizzle in just two more films!

Fu Manchu is back!

[psychoren2002 · 7/10 · 22 November 2006]

Sequel to "The Face of Fu Manchu", "Brides..." is even better if you look movies just to be entertained. It's the kind of silly, funny, absurd, kinky time capsule movie that never loses his charm. Of curse, plot holes and mistakes are a plenty (it's in the 20's but girls looks very 60's) but Lee's terrific performance and a good cast full of familiar faces (even Pink Panther's Cato is here!) helps to sustain interest. Nayland Smith and Dr. Petrie are a later version of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, but Fu Manchu is the main character here, cruel, sadistic and totally evil, probably the best villain ever, sadly forgotten today due to his racial connotations. The franchise will continue on three more films, but "Face..." and "Brides..." (both directed by Don Sharp) are the real thing. By the way, the 5 films are available now in a box set released in Spain by Manga Films (region 2), but beware: the last 2 movies (by Jesus Franco) are in Spanish without subtitles.

Towers of London Meets the Tower of London

[richardchatten · 5/10 · 10 November 2019]

The first sequel to 'The Face of Fu Manchu' (1965), and the only one shot at Bray and in a very wintry looking London; hence the scrap in front of the Tower of London and Burt Kwouk's presence as Lee's lab assistant, who helps man the controls of a much more modest control room than that presided over by Dr.No at the finale. (Since the locations here are far drabber than they became after Towers relocated in the East the emphasis this time round is more on drama than travelogue, and the better for it.)

Nigel Green is no longer Nayland Smith, but Don Sharp is still directing, so although not a patch on the original it's still slightly preferable to the dross that followed.

Tsai Chin isn't given much to do in this one, but her dryly amusing appearance disguised as a cleaning lady makes one regret that she never went out into the field in disguise again...

Fu Manchu's up to his old tricks

[bensonmum2 · 7/10 · 22 March 2008]

Fu Manchu's up to his old tricks – he's trying to take over the world. This time he's kidnapped the daughters of several esteemed scientists to use as blackmail so their fathers will help him with his plans. He's constructing something akin to a laser that can destroy entire cities. As usual, Nayland Smith is hot on his trail.

I believe I've seen all of the Christopher Lee Fu Manchu movies and this one, The Brides of Fu Manchu, is to me the best. What sets this Fu Manchu movie apart from the others, especially those made later on, is the lively direction, the competent editing, and a much more coherent story. I'm one of those who will often defend Jess Franco till I'm blue in the face, but I can't do that with his Fu Manchu movies. Compared to The Brides of Fu Manchu, Uncle Jess' Fu Manchu movies are almost unwatchable. If you don't believe me just take a look at The Castle of Fu Manchu. It's God awful! Getting back to this movie, another plus for The Brides of Fu Manchu is the seemingly always enjoyable Christopher Lee. Lee is solid and certainly had a knack for playing the baddie as good as anyone. He imbibes Fu Manchu with a real sense of evil. You get the feeling that he's a man capable of doing anything to anybody at anytime. The rest of the cast is good, but nothing to write home about. Although not terribly memorable, it was nice to see Carole Gray in another film.

For someone new to the series, The Brides of Fu Manchu would seem to make a good place to start. It's not perfect, but it is entertaining. For what it's worth, I'll give it a 7/10.

Second in the series...not bad, not good...

[JasparLamarCrabb · 4/10 · 28 October 2012]

Not bad but certainly not the best of the Fu-Manchu bunch. Christopher Lee (as the world's most evil man) kidnaps a bunch of foxy girls with the hope that their scientist fathers will help him devise a way to send deadly radio frequency throughout the world. He's pursued, as always, by resilient Scotland yard cop Nayland Smith. It's silly rather than suspenseful with a plethora of studio bound action. Lee is fine and Tsai Chin is again on hand as his equally nasty daughter. Directed by Don Sharp, who, after helming the first two of this series, wisely stepped aside...the budgets for the final three went steadily downhill. Ernest Steward did the photography.

Extremely entertaining.

[HumanoidOfFlesh · 8/10 · 27 December 2002]

"The Brides of Fu Manchu" is the second of five Fu Manchu movies produced by Harry Alan Towers and starring Christopher Lee.The film is definitely the most entertaining of all the Fu Manchu films.The production values are top notch and the film is well-directed and acted.This time Fu Manchu wants to conquer the world("In a few moments,the entire world will capitulate to me.This is the destiny of Fu Manchu."-Fu Manchu).Fu Manchu's new evil plan is to send explosive energy via sound waves to small receivers placed in various cities throughout the world.It's up to Nayland Smith(Douglas Wilmer)to stop him...Anyway I enjoyed this film and you should too,if you like British horror/crime cinema.All the actresses starring in it are beautiful,especially Tsai Chin,the evil daughter of Fu Manchu.Fu Manchu returns a year later in "The Vengeance of Fu Manchu"(1967).

Brides of Fu Manchu

[Scarecrow-88 · 7/10 · 10 December 2008]

The diabolical Chinese architect of doom, Fu Manchu(Christopher Lee, imposing as ever) still carrying a devious desire to control mankind across the globe, has orchestrated a new plan to destroy the top military nations' generals and Commander-in-chiefs who are gathering together in London for a service dedication at St. Paul's church. Through a method using energy(..provided through the use of light, heat and power, transmitted by sound waves), Fu Manchu needs the cooperation and know-how of the top industrialists and scientists, and in getting that he kidnaps their wives and daughters(..they are the "brides" of the title), using hypnosis with his incredible mental powers, removing their will and in doing so can command them to do anything he so desires. Fu Manchu's arch nemesis and wily adversary, Scotland Yard Assistant Commissioner Sir Dennis Nayland Smith(Douglas Wilmer), along with pathologist Dr. Petrie(Howard Marion-Crawford;Smith's Dr. Watson, you could say)and Parisian Inspector Pierre Grimaldi(Roger Hanin), must discover his plans and stop him before the cunning mastermind is able to remove the great military leaders which help to keep our world's countries safe.

The film has three basic settings. London where Fu Manchu has dacoit soldiers attempting to kidnap Marie Lentz(Marie Versini), the daughter of a great scientist needed to assist the madman in equipping his machines with the proper settings to bomb major cities. Marie's fiancé, German research chemist Franz Baumer(Heinz Drache), helps Smith and company in their efforts to find Fu Manchu's headquarters, buried underground in the foothills of a specific French mountainside. The film often shows the trapped women imprisoned in Fu Manchu's headquarters, and slave Abdul(Salmaan Peerzada)who plans to save them. A certain industrialist, Jules Merlin(Rupert Davies), is chosen for his expertise in building little wireless sets which enable Fu Manchu's henchman to set up their operations in small locations. The film shows Merlin's daughter Michel(Carole Gray)imprisoned which motivates him to do what Fu Manchu asks. When Marie is finally kidnapped in a well orchestrated siege in an opera house, she will coordinate an escape plan with Michel. Baumer will also infiltrate the headquarters posing as his fiancé's father. The film also has scenes in Paris where Merlin's business is centered. Marie doesn't know that her best friend, Nikki Sheldon(Harald Leipnitz)is actually working for Fu Manchu and assists in having her captured at the opera house. Fu Manchu's corrupt organization is under the disguise of Wireless International. Showing his capabilities, Fu Manchu destroys a cruise ship, The Windsor Castle, which will prompt Smith to move faster in stopping him before he's able to carry out his ultimate plan. Using Marie's father, Otto Lentz(Joseph Fürst)expertise, they will hatch a plan to use a stronger signal to counteract Manchu's with the lives of many important figures' lying in the balance.

Plot-heavy, exciting, fast-paced fun with a great cast and dangerous situations creating an exhausting thrill-ride with Lee in great form even though he doesn't even attempt to sound Chinese. Wilmer is effective at portraying Fu Manchu's adversary;he presents the commissioner as fast-thinking, wise, and courageous. Smith has to have certain attributes if he's able to somehow defeat a villain such as Fu Manchu, with lives at stake. I think Wilmer is convincing, selling his Smith as someone we can count on to catch the terrorists out to cause chaos and global mischief. There are some thrilling set-pieces, such as the opera house kidnapping, the fight that breaks out between the "brides" and Fu Manchu's dacoit soldiers, and an attempt at hi-jacking Marie in her hospital of employment. We get to see Baumer beat the hell out of Fu Manchu's men and the destruction of the Windsor Castle ship as Smith and his men failed in saving those killed is quite a stunner. Unfortunately, Fu Manchu's headquarters inside the foothills look like cheap sets(..it's clear, I believe, that producer Towers desires to mimic Hammer), but that did very little to distract me from the perilous situation the madman was creating for our heroes. There's so much going on, you have little time to catch your breath. Director Don Sharp once again shows his skills at creating a lot with little, crafting a nice adventure out of the money producer Harry Allan Towers was able to give him. Rounding out a solid cast includes Tsai Chin as Fu Manchu's daughter Lin Tang, ever supportive and willing to obey. Burt Kwouk(the Pink Panther movies)is Feng, Fu Manchu's top scientist who is leader over the mechanical operations functioning the energy sent to destroy targets at his boss' command. It's great to actually see Asians portraying Fu Manchu's Chinese soldiers.

It's not a Jess Franco film! **breathes a sigh of relief**

[BA_Harrison · 4/10 · 19 November 2016]

Christopher Lee dons silk robes, eyeliner and droopy moustache to return as the most evil criminal master mind in the world, yellow peril Fu Manchu, who this time plans world domination by kidnapping the wives and daughters of top industrialists and scientists, forcing their menfolk to build a highly destructive weapon that operates via radio waves. And when he has no more use for the women, into the snake-pit they go...

A little bit James Bond and a little bit Sherlock Holmes, assistant commissioner from Scotland Yard Nayland Smith (Douglas Wilmer) is the man tasked with tracking down the evil Asian before he can put his dastardly plot to control the world into action.

I thought I was settling down to yet another Jess Franco film when I pressed play on this film, so was rather relieved to see that it was directed by Don Sharp, who made the rather excellent Rasputin The Mad Monk for Hammer Studios. But while this film is nowhere near as bad as your average Franco film, it isn't all that great either, the tedious plot providing dull intrigue, little suspense and lots of repetitive fisticuffs between our brave heroes and their despicable enemies, all of which gets rather boring after a while. About the only thing that prevented me from dozing off at times was the fact that all of the kidnapped women are very attractive and wear revealing dresses. Now what are the chances of that?

"It's A Bit Over-Dramatic, Isn't It, Commissioner?"

[stryker-5 · 20 March 1999]

The nefarious Fu Manchu is bent on world domination, and he has built a heinous gizmo in the Atlas Mountains of French Morocco which will bring the world's governments to heel. His contrivance is able to transmit massive energy charges in the form of soundwaves. In order to handle the technology, Fu Manchu needs western scientific experts, and he acquires these men by the fiendish ploy of kidnapping their daughters (all beautiful 20-somethings) and threatening to chuck the girls into his ghoulish snakepit. Unfortunately for the Chinese arch-villain, Assistant Commissioner Nayland Smith of Scotland Yard is on the case ....

If the 'Fu' films which came after this one were considerably worse in quality, then they must have been execrable. This dire effort is difficult to watch, and two reviews would not be sufficient space to list all the improbabilities and nonsense contained herein. Portentous music and mock-heroic acting by Douglas Wilmer (Nayland Smith) and Christopher Lee (Fu) sit uneasily with cheap fibreglass sets and weak stunt choreography.

Nayland Smith and his sidekick Dr. Petrie are obviously meant to be Holmes-Watson imitations. The film is set in some vague period of the early 20th century, with Edwardian touches (uniforms of jailers and nurses, telephone handsets) but with aircraft and automobiles of later periods. Marie Lenz (Marie Versini) dresses like a 60's girl, with her short skirts and mink coat. The captive girls and Fu's daughter Lin Tang (Tsai Chin) sport the ultimate in 60's lacquered coiffure, which seems to stay in place no matter how they are chained to pillars, held over snakepits or roughed up by Fu's guards. One of the girls has a very exposed black bra, hardly an Edwardian garment.

When Marie and Franz are attacked near the Tower of London, Fu's men obligingly come at Franz one at a time, rather than overwhelming him - a curious behaviour trait repeated elsewhere in the film. Marie is a nurse, but she attends the ballet in a mink coat and sits in the royal box.

"They live only to serve me," says Fu of the beautiful girls whom he can hypnotise with a glance. So why does he chain them to pillars? Petrie has a suspiciously modern-looking wireless set in his home, and an even more suspiciously convenient uncle at the BBC. Nayland Smith laughably orders 'three carloads' of police officers to accompany him to Limehouse, and makes a personal call to the Home Secretary on a whim. Worse follows.

Bert Kwouk, the ever-present British-Chinese actor, plays Feng, Fu Manchu's reliable technical boffin. Feng is worried about the power loads that Fu is demanding, because they might start a 'chain reaction' (an electro-magnetic chain reaction? huh?) Nobody even attempts to explain how the millions of tons of equipment found its way to Morocco and got assembled without the knowledge of the French authorities. Why do the men in the sham police vehicle drive to the scene in Fu costumes, and put on police uniforms once they are in situ?

At the end, the ominous voice of Fu Manchu tells us that we will hear from him again. That is the most dreadful moment in the film - the threat of a sequel.

The fiend from the East with the droopy moustache is back!

[Stevieboy666 · 5/10 · 14 September 2022]

Chinese fiend Fu Manchu is kidnapping beautiful young women and holding them to ransom so that he can build a powerful ray gun and take over the world! When you think about it these plots of his are rather hilarious, this is no comedy though I did find myself laughing at the silliness more than once. The late great Sir Christopher Lee once again plays Fu Manchu, a terrific actor and certainly one of my favourites, however the sight of him made up to look Oriental with his long dangling moustache is hard to take seriously. Once again his arch enemy Nayland Smith, along with his assistant Dr Petrie, is on the case to foil Fu, the two are very similar to Sherlock Holmes and Dr Wartson, plus the movie has also got a James Bond feel to it. Set in the 1920's it looks very nice, though I suspect that some of the lovely old vehicles used were from a later decade. Not the best entry in the series but it is very colourful, has plenty of action and is reasonably entertaining.

Action-packed sequel is fun but no classic

[Leofwine_draca · 6/10 · 16 December 2015]

If you recall, Lee's vicious Oriental supervillain was blown to smithereens at the end of the first entry in this series, THE FACE OF FU MANCHU. However, he's back in the best of health in this, the first sequel, with no explanation of how he escaped! THE BRIDES OF FU MANCHU has almost exactly the same structure as the first film: the characters are introduced; minor characters are killed off; there are lots of fights; Fu Manchu develops a new weapon. People are even strangled with Tibetan Prayer Scarves again! This is definitely one of those popcorn films. While satisfying on a purely visual level, after watching it you realise that there isn't any real substance underneath. THE BRIDES OF FU MANCHU does such a good job of being entertaining though, that you can't really criticise it. All of the ingredients are there, including numerous fights, car chases, enemy bases, kidnappings and radio messages, so there's something for everyone, whether you're an adventure fan or a simple thrill seeker. The spy, crime and adventure genres intermingle so seamlessly that you don't even realise it most of the time.

There are lots of things worth watching the film for, almost too many for me to point out (but of course I'll have a go). You've got some classic '60s machinery with flashing lights which doesn't do anything; you've got women in low cut revealing dresses; you've got a cast of extras including soldiers from the foreign legion; there's the tea-drinking British hero who dresses up as a prototype Indiana Jones; some satisfying explosions and lots and lots of fight scenes.

These fights are just as good as the ones in the first film, with men fighting for hours but not getting a single scratch or ruffled hair! I love these cheesy kind of fights and there's a lot to enjoy in these bits. Also, how can you not love a film where the heroes cooperate with the BBC to fight the yellow peril? At the end of the film there are even some genuinely exciting moments. There's a varied cast all going through their paces in this film. Christopher Lee is the rather wooden Fu Manchu, given little to do except be a face behind the evil this time around, but he's still fun and looks great in the role. Tsai Chin is wonderfully sinister and evil as his daughter. Douglas Wilmer plays Nayland Smith this time around, he's no Nigel Green but he's adequate enough in a square-jawed hero type of way. Burt Kwouk has a small role as an unlucky assistant, while familiar face Rupert Davies (DRACULA HAS RISEN FROM THE GRAVE), also appears playing a Frenchman, complete with comedy French accent! A pleasing alternative to the James Bond series, the Fu Manchu films are always entertaining, even if they are bad. This one is strictly average, but it's enjoyable and I had a lot of fun with it, as you can probably guess from reading the above. Lee's final words are "the world shall hear from me again", and guess what, he was right, appearing in the follow year's THE VENGEANCE OF FU MANCHU.

There's more action in a half hour "Batman" episode.

[mark.waltz · 3/10 · 9 October 2023]

While this starts off intriguing (if a bit silly), it quickly bogs down to mostly talk and plotting, both from Fu Manchu (Christopher Lee) and the scientists desperate to get their daughters back. The man who desperately needs a manicure and his equally evil daughter (Poulet Tu) have kidnapped the daughters of the greatest scientists of the world (I guess ones that only had sons or no kids at all were sparred), put them in a trance and order them to do their evil bidding. This includes sending the daughters who refuse into a pit of vipers, and set their sights on creating a machine that can make giant vessels and buildings vanish into oblivion.

The man with the mustache sits around or stands in his ridiculous robes has now threatened to destroy the world's biggest cities, so the clock is ticking. Sadly so was my patience waiting for these things to happen and for world security to get James Bond or Matt Helm or Flint in there to stop them. It's simply an opportunity for a bunch of beautiful women to pose behind bars, and it's truly boring and frustrating. Certainly good looking, but audacious. These juvenile plots are worse than even the most tedious of serials, only coming to life towards the end.

No one will notice, squire

[dsewizzrd-1 · 6/10 · 28 January 2016]

Christopher Lee is Fu Manchu and kidnaps the daughters of leading scientists in the Edwardian era in order to build a wireless transmitter that transmit power waves. He then hypnotises the women into submission (why not the scientists).

In one scene, what is clearly a pre-heterodyne wireless set he sends a message to his adversary, but then in the next scene behind it is a record player when he shows the message to his colleagues, like they changed the script halfway through.

There's also a scene where an actor turns off a noisy tap halfway through a telephone call, a car is shown whole after it has been crashed, a police constable that slips and slides on the road but recovers, a painful looking stage dive during a melee, and a flighty horse that looks like its about to run away.

Enjoyable but mild crime thriller with Lee sufficiently menacing as the evil supervillain

[Colbridge · 5/10 · 12 January 2022]

Enjoyable hokum with Christopher Lee sufficiently menacing as the evil Chinese villain Dr. Fu Manchu, reprising his role from The Face of Fu Manchu (1965), with this being the second of five films made in the 1960's.

Hell bent on taking over the world Fu Manchu, along with his equally sadistic daughter and army of henchman, orders the kidnapping of the daughters of prominent scientists to help him build a deadly device that can destroy it's targets and hold the world to ransom. The final third feels like it was inspired by the recent success of the James Bond films, although the Sax Rohmer books on which they are based pre-date Ian Fleming's creation as they were written in 1912 by the British author.

This adventure crime thriller mainly takes place in London as we follow Nayland Smith of Scotland Yard trying to stay one step ahead of the crime lord. Douglas Wilmer does a decent job in replacing Nigel Green as the detective and there's a good supporting cast including the requisite appearance of Burt Kwouk who usually gets hired for Eastern Asian roles as the engineer.

The pacing is measured and the action is mild in this pleasing instalment of the Fu Manchu film series produced by the prolific British screenwriter and producer Harry Alan Towers.

"Things have been developing pretty fast"

[hwg1957-102-265704 · 6/10 · 29 April 2021]

The film title is a bit of a misnomer as Fu Manchu is not indulging in polygamy and the women themselves aren't brides but apart from those quibbles this is a decent sequel to 'The Face Of Fu Machu' as the evil doctor kidnaps the daughters of some scientists to get them to build a super weapon that will enable him to conquer the world. But Nayland-Smith of Scotland Yard and Dr. Petrie, a pathologist from the Home Office, are on Fu's trail.

It misses Nigel Green as Nayland-Smith from the first film but Douglas Wilmer is sufficiently good. Christopher Lee returns though and he is good as usual and Tsai Chin, enhancing a range of colourful dresses, also shines again as his loyal and lethal daughter Lin Tang. The great Burt Kwouk has a good role as a villainous scientist who enjoys his work. The vintage cars add atmosphere and the outdoor locations when seen are scenic.

It's a shame that after 'The Face....' and 'The Brides...' the Fu films faded in to forgettable failures.

An immensely enjoyable entry in the "Fu Manchu" series

[Woodyanders · 8/10 · 10 October 2008]

Shrewd, ruthless and fearsome Chinese criminal mastermind Fu Manchu (the impeccable Christopher Lee in peak villainous form) kidnaps the beautiful daughters of the world's leading scientists and demands that they help build him a lethal death ray or else he will kill all of the lovely ladies. It's up to Fu Manchu's cagey and stalwart longtime nemesis Scotland Yard Inspector Nayland Smith (nicely played by Douglas Wilmer) to stop him before it's too late. Ably directed by Don Sharp, with an absorbing and eventful script by Peter Welbeck, a constant brisk pace, crisp, lively color cinematography by Ernest Steward, several exciting and well-staged action scenes, a rousing, spirited score by Johnny Douglas, a reasonable amount of tension, an admirably serious tone (there are no cheesy one-lines or needless campy humor to get in the way of the story), and a stirring fiery conclusion, this picture overall really delivers the entertaining goods. Moreover, the solid acting from a sturdy cast helps matters a whole lot: Lee naturally excels as the deliciously wily and wicked Fu Manchu, Wilmer makes for a properly resolute Smith, plus there are sound supporting performances by Tsai Chin as Fu Mancho equally evil daughter Lin Tang, Marie Versini as feisty, fetching nurse Marie Lenz, Heinz Drache as hot-headed chemist Franz Baumer, Howard Marion-Crawford as Smith's competent partner Dr. Petrie, Rupert Davies as beleaguered scientist Jules Merlin, Kenneth Fortescue as the eager Sergeant Spicer, and Burt Kwouk (Cato in the "Pink Panther" movies) as Fu Mancho's loyal henchman Feno. A neat little flick.

Colorful!

[JohnHowardReid · 7/10 · 7 October 2017]

Producer: Harry Alan Towers. Executive producer: Oliver A. Unger. A Hallam Production, released in the U.K. by Anglo-Amalgamated (16 December 1966), in the U.S.A. by Seven Arts (14 December 1966). No New York opening. Registered: August, 1966. 94 minutes (U.S.A.); 91 minutes (U.K.). Sydney opening at the Capitol (a weekly change, first- release cinema): 2 June 1967.

COMMENT: Made by almost exactly the same team as The Face of Fu Manchu, it is pleasing to report that this second venture is equally as good — although in a different way.

What strikes you about this film is the subtle use of color. From the first entrance of Fu Manchu wearing a green tunic against a background of reddish statuary to the climax of exploding machinery with a red light blinking in the gloom and a red handle shaking in its slot, the film is always visually striking.

The director keeps the story moving at a fast clip and the action scenes are convincingly handled. The only jarring element is some unfortunate back projection in the outdoor scenes at the climax.

The cast, however, is little more than adequate. One misses Nigel Green who played Nayland Smith in the first film and who then achieved such acclaim for his portrayal in The Ipcress File, that he has now priced himself out of this film's budget.

See my review of "The Face of Fu Manchu" on IMDb for an account of this series. ("Brides" is available on a very good quality Momentum DVD).

The world shall hear from Fu again...and again...

[El-Stumpo · 19 February 2004]

Surviving his cataclysmic demise at the end of Don Sharp's The Face Of Fu Manchu (1965), Christopher Lee dons the stick-on Eastern eyelids a second time, utterly and entertainingly unconvincing as Sax Rohmer's villain-to-end-all villains. With his daughter and resident henchmen led by Burt Kwouk (Kato in the Pink Panther series), Fu is now blackmailing the world's top scientists to create a doomsday device by kidnapping their daughters. Douglas Wilmer replaces The Face Of Fu Manchu's Nigel Green as Neyland Smith, Fu Manchu's lantern-jawed arch nemesis from Scotland Yard, and battles all manner of Cartoon oriental stereotypes before rescuing the reluctant harem from the firey finale. Lee utters the immortal words `The world shall hear from me again!", thus ensuring a further three sequels (Vengeance..., Castle... and Blood Of Fu Manchu, all released in 1968) for producer Harry Allen Towers - the last two in the series helmed by Spain's infamous hack Jess Franco (whose filmic Midas Touch could grind the Star Wars series to a halt!).

More lives than a cat.

[lost-in-limbo · 6/10 · 25 April 2010]

Producer / writer Harry Alan Towers and director Don Sharp follow up their 1965 "The Face of Fu Manchu" a year later with the modest "The Brides of Fu Manchu". Actor Christopher Lee returns as Sax Rhomer's oriental mastermind villain Fu Manchu in another attempt to take over the world, after surviving the explosive finale in "Face…". Nigel Green doesn't return, which leaves Douglas Wilmer filling in as the commissioner Neyland Smith from Scotland Yard in his quest to foil Fu Manchu's quest for world domination. Fu Manchu is kidnapping young women who happened to be daughters of prominent scientists in the order of blackmailing them in helping him create a death weapon, but Neyland Smith is hot on the trail.

Keeping to the same formula as "Face…" it has outlandish plotting made up of set-pieces, elaborate set details (the secret hideout), pulp dialogues, rough and tumble action (combat, fists flying, car chases, explosions) that's wrapped up like an enjoyable live comic strip. Sharp's handling might look plain and tight, but it's efficiently exciting and zippy in its pacing. The thick plot is deviously knotty, but surely convenient in the uncanny developments. Good old fashion scheming in trying to keep one step ahead. There are sound performances from the cast. Lee is doing it easy, but gets away with such a magnetic presence. Wilmer is no Green, but is acceptable and Tsai Chin is good fun as Fu Manchu's evil daughter.