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Tuesday, June 2, 2009

Film / Nerd Must See: Danger: Diabolik

Posted by Paul Constant on Tue, Jun 2, 2009 at 3:43 PM

Because you can't go to SIFF every single night of the festival, I'd like to recommend you watch the 1968 film Danger: Diabolik on DVD tonight. Adapted from Italian comic books, Diabolik is the story of the anti-James Bond: a master criminal who continually pulls off daring and dangerous heists to keep funding his lifestyle, and he'll murder anyone who gets in his way. Unlike Bond, this thief seems to be in a sexy monogamous relationship: Over the course of the film, it seems that Diabolik is stealing gems, gold, and cash to keep his leggy blond girlfriend happy.

Besides the Ennio Morricone score (which often sounds like a classic Bollywood riff), director Mario Bava the other compelling reason to watch Danger: Diabolik. Bava is best known for his gory Italian horror films, but here he makes a comic book movie with a whole lot of propulsive style. The special effects are almost entirely great, and the cinematography is both wildly experimental and beautiful. It's one of the best comic book movies I've ever seen. The fact that it wound up as the last movie to be mocked by Mystery Science Theater 3000 doesn't make it something cheap and cheesy, just very much a product of its time.

And I think it's one of the few good movies I've ever seen that made me really hungry for a remake. I don't know why Diabolik isn't a recurring film character, just like James Bond. A new Diabolik series starring Clive Owen—Ocean's Eleven meets 007, with just a little Batman thrown in—would be one of those blockbuster films that manages to charm everyone.

Here's the trailer, but I have to warn you that the last minute or so of the trailer completely shows you the ending of the film—as in, you get a condensed version of the last fifteen minutes of the movie in the trailer—so if you think you're ever going to watch Danger: Diabolik, I'd recommend only watching the first half.

Now that's a movie.

(In less welcome movie news, they're apparently making a prequel to Alien.)

Comments (19) RSS

Oldest First Unregistered On Registered On Add a comment

also used as the very last movie to be riffed by MST3k

Posted by Akbar Fazil on June 2, 2009 at 3:48 PM

i seriously need to stop skimming articles.

Posted by Akbar Fazil on June 2, 2009 at 3:48 PM

Man, I LOVED that film. What a note for MST to go out on. I think I will watch it tonight - I've got a real soft spot for John Phillip Law.

Posted by wench on June 2, 2009 at 3:49 PM

Hey! There's a shower scene that got cut from the MST version! Curses, where can I get a copy?

Posted by wench on June 2, 2009 at 3:55 PM

I've only seen this a couple of times - my last viewing was about five years ago in a pirated DVD version, which inexplicably switched to Spanish (and no subtitles!) for about the middle 20 minutes - but it's still a hoot! Totally rooted in its time period, and some of the transitions (the movie is based on several of the comic's "episodes") are a little weird, but overall a very sexy & stylish adaptation of a little-known (in the U.S. at any rate) European GN.

Posted by COMTE

on June 2, 2009 at 4:04 PM

I was thinking Jude Law would be a perfect fit for the title role. Now I see why.

Posted by Meatbot3000 on June 2, 2009 at 4:08 PM

This film is where Austin Powers and other films seemed to get a lot of ideas from.

Very sexy, very french/italian, very ultra cool.

Posted by Will in Seattle

on June 2, 2009 at 4:27 PM

Six months ago you could find this DVD for under $10 at any number of merchants. Now it's out of print, and regularly sells for $25. I'm just sayin'.

Posted by eric (the other one) on June 2, 2009 at 4:45 PM

I second Jude Law. He would be a fantastic Diabolik.

Posted by SF in SF on June 2, 2009 at 4:59 PM

Oh, and if there is a remake the soundtrack has to be done by Mike Patton.

Posted by SF in SF on June 2, 2009 at 5:02 PM

Since we're recommending old films, how about sending people to the cinema to see the original Taking of Pelham One Two Three. I saw it at Film Forum last Friday. REALLY good stuff.

Posted by oldmanandthesea

on June 2, 2009 at 5:05 PM

@8:

SHIT! I would have totally paid $10 for a good copy! No point in asking where now, though. :(

Posted by COMTE

on June 2, 2009 at 5:59 PM

@7:

For sure. Myers pretty much ripped-off "Diabolik!", the two James Coburn Flint movies, the train-wreck of the original "Casino Royale", "The Avengers", Vincent Price's campy "Dr. Goldfoot" films (ooh! I totally think one of those was directed by Brava!), even a bit of Michael Caine's "The Italian Job" - and of course the Connery "Bond" films, among others.

Not really an original idea in that series. I think the only reason it was as successful as it was, was simply because most of the audience wasn't familiar with the source material he was copying.

Posted by COMTE

on June 2, 2009 at 6:10 PM

One of the best lines from the MST Diabolik: "He has a pillow-top face."

John Philip Law was also in another all-time great MST episode, Space Mutiny. "Oh Kalgan, take me away!"

Posted by laterite on June 3, 2009 at 12:57 AM

Diabolik owns. I also thought Jude Law would be great for a remake. Hurry, Hollywood - before he loses his sexy!

Posted by vinylsaurus

on June 3, 2009 at 8:05 AM

It is to the credit of John Philip Law as a performer that he was able to bring Diabolik to live with nothing but raw physicality and the emotive expression of his eyes.

Additionally I am not so sure it is fair criticism of the Austen Powers movies to call them rip-offs when Myers was completely up-front about his movie being a genre spoof from the get-go. This isn't a defense of the movie's quality as it is completely mediocre. I think its success was due to America loving middle-of-the-road crap.

Posted by McGee on June 3, 2009 at 10:03 AM

Flint films ripped off Danger Diabolik too - you can see it in many scenes.

Posted by Will in Seattle

on June 3, 2009 at 10:09 AM

Ok, now I know this is Slog and we're all supposed to be too cool for the room, but the first AP movie was good dumb fun for the time. Though a lot of the dialogue seems incredibly awkward now, Dr. Evil's monologue on his parentage still kills me. The 2nd and 3rd were terrible, of course, though casting Rob Lowe as a younger Robert Wagner in part 2 was an inspired bit of casting.

Posted by laterite on June 3, 2009 at 10:42 AM

Too bad you didn't make this suggestion last year when it played at the SIFF theater. Somebody should be touting their schedule on a regular basis. It's the only place where you can see great movies from the past, on a regular basis, in Seattle anymore. Are they still doing Metro Classics? Seattle used to be one of the greatest cities in the WORLD for seeing the classics at half a dozen theaters in the area. Then the indie scene was ushered in (by local fools) and now our options are crappy mainstream films or crappy wanna-be indie films. SUPPORT GOOD MOVIES.

Posted by James Early on June 4, 2009 at 12:09 PM