Review: Danger: Diabolik

John Phillip Law stars as the masked title thief, whose criminal exploits are all to satisfy the material needs of his beloved Eva (Marisa Mell) while they make love surrounded by stolen money in their underground cave hideout. Michel Piccoli is the unamused police inspector seemingly always a step behind. That is until he finds a way to get the local mob (represented by Adolfo Celi) to also share a grievance with Diabolik. Terry-Thomas turns up as the spineless and increasingly embarrassed Minister of Finance.

 

Mario Bava (“Black Sunday”, “Black Sabbath”) made several very fine films in multiple genres, this 1967 comic book heist film may not be his best film (“Kill…Baby, Kill” gets my vote) but it might just be his most fun. It’s a fantastic-looking slice of 60s coolness, a mixture of “Ocean’s Eleven”, “Barbarella”, and the 60s “Batman” TV series, if that sounds like your deal this one’s for you. Colourful, sexy, it almost reminded me of a 60s-era Bond film but told from the point of view of the villain, the title character played by John Phillip Law. I love that the title character’s motivation for his criminal activity is simply cater to his lady’s expensive taste. Jewels, money, etc. He’s just trying to make her happy. It’s both romantic and kinda douchebag-y, completely antithetical to most movie protagonists because he is kind of an antagonist. It’s just that there’s someone even more disreputable than him here, Adolfo Celi who is a lot more interesting than he was as Largo in “Thunderball”. I just find it funny that our protagonists are selfish thieves.

 

One detail here that I really liked that sets this one apart is in the inevitable wall-scaling scene. Unlike the norm, Diabolik wears an outfit that actually blends in with the surface he’s climbing. Therefore his outfit has a purpose. I know wearing black does too, but I’ve always thought that makes the wearer more noticeable whilst climbing than someone wearing a more camouflaged outfit. The music score by the great Ennio Morricone (“The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly”, “For a Few Dollars More”, “The Untouchables”) is a mixture of 60s era and typical Morricone touches. Meanwhile, he’s not in the film much but this is probably my favourite Terry-Thomas performance. As the buffoonish Minister of Finance he’s hilarious on sight.

 

How did this not become a film franchise with continual adventures with the title character? Cool, amusing, decadently stylish, all-round campy goodness. A must see for fans of cult cinema. It’s a nutty, cool blast. Based on a comic book created by Angela E. Giussari and Luciano Giussari, the screenplay is by Dino Maiuri (“War Goddess”), Tudor Gates (who co-wrote the aforementioned “Barbarella” as well as “The Vampire Lovers”), Brian Degas (“Barbarella”), and Bava himself.

 

Rating: B-

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