[.ca] Danger: Diabolik

From Amazon.com:
Master criminal Diabolik's got it all. He's got a black leather suit and ski mask, a pair of Jaguar XKEs, gadgets galore, an underground headquarters, and of course the ravishing Eva (played by Sixties Euro-hottie Marisa Mell). Together, the two of them pull off daring capers, staying a step or two ahead of the police, the government and rival mobsters all the while. Think the Sixties Batman TV series, James Bond, Barbarella, Matt Helm, and even a bit of Austin Powers for this distinctly Sixties crime romp. Director Mario Bava, as usual, made the most out of a less-than-lavish budget, with wild sets, an Ennio Morricone score, striking photography, and a psychedelic-soaked feel all the way around, with Bava's trademark camera work making it a visual delight in many scenes. Terry-Thomas comes in as a bumbling government official (the scene where his press conference is disrupted by Diabolik's "exhilarating gas" is a classic). It's all very tongue-in-cheek fun, based as it is on a comic book from the period. John Phillip Law, of course, is no better than he ever is as the rather fey master criminal, passing off his wooden performance as "stoic", but it works. Unlike contemporaries like Bond, though, Diabolik eschews the swinging Sixties life for a happily monogamous relationship with Eva (who wouldn't?). This is some goofy brain candy that's perfect for an evening of Sixties-retro fun. --Jerry Renshaw

Total enjoyment:
Once upon a time films were made with low budgets and heaps of imagination, and this is one of them. Though given a whopping $3M by the ego-maniac Dino de Laurentis (King Kong the atrocious remake) the genius Mario Bava brought this 60s beauty in at $400K. Even converted into today's hard currency it would be hard to conceive of a modern day director either struggling out of bed for such a miniscule sum, or ever bringing a film in under budget. Instead Bava treats the eye and the mind to a dazzling psychedelic modernist fantasy. There seems to be a common notion that many directors of the past were somehow more stupid than the giant intellects of the cinema of today and that they had no comprehension of what they were doing. Bava knew exactly what he was making with this movie version of a popular European comic and that was to make a film that was fun. Pitted against a world of old stilted politics, bumbling police and chalk-stripe-suited Mafia villains Diabolik, a cool ultra-thief with an underground lair to be envied by Dr No and every other evil genius, outwits his pursuers time and time again with a manic laugh, a delicious girl-friend and his 'n' hers Jaguar E-Types. This film is a two-hour trip; the score is superb and the images have a vivid organic feel unachievable with today's over-processed CGI FX. If you love the visuals of Barbarella you'll love this. Bava, though, has a more cynical view of the world and in one scene presents us with a nightclub where villains ply the "innocent" hippies with drugs making them dance in hysterically funny ways that is just as an incisive critique of that era as it would be of some rave scenes today. Some things just don't change. Sure if you want to adopt the brave stance of the post-modernist and assume the sophisticated position of The One Who Laughs At Bad Old Films then you'll get some kind of kick out of this. But you won't get anything like the kick you will by just relaxing into the brilliantly-lit mad world of Mario Bava where nothing is quite what it appears and baddies win - almost.

Im a Mister Bava Lova,Mario Bava Superstar!!:
Danger:Diabolik is based on the same Comics wich was very cool and Mario bava was the right man for a real action movie on Danger:Diabolik! The Moviesets he created is so small but they looked like they cost lot of hundredthousand dollars, but the cost in real was maybe 1000 Dollar!??! Its a great superhero movie with the typically colourimpression of Mario Bava, the master of Italian Cinema and the creator of the Giallo Thrillers. Danger:Diabolik got some spectaculary and stunning action scenes,good looking chicks and a nice and cute superhero. Im so happy that this movie was released on DVD! Are you too? Buy and you will be!!

Great fun for kids aged between 3 and 93:
An excellent movie for people of all ages. It may sometimes seem like they are laying it on a little bit thick but if we keep in mind that movie is based on a comic book character, it all makes sense. The movie has a strong 60s James Bond feel to it but Diablolik isn't another one of those crime fighting heroes; he's a suave Juaguar driving thief who's next crime is always more spectacular then the last one. Like most of Mario Bava's work, this movie provides a very cool visual experience and is loads of plain simple fun. I hope they release it on DVD very soon.

Diabolikal:
Imagine if James Bond were a master thief -- complete with beautiful girlfriend (monogamously, though), daredevil missions, and a wily talent for throwing off the cops. That's the kind of character in the heart of "Danger Diabolik," a fun, kitschy adventure directed by Mario Bava. Bava's best movies were in the giallo genre, but he knows how to do the psychedelic cult movie -- and there's always the feeling that he's winking at the audience. The police are being driven nuts by Diabolik, a brilliant master thief who makes off with loads of money, jewels and other valuables, with dogged Inspector Ginko (Michel Piccoli) right behind him. Then Ginko gets an offer from a mob boss (Adolfo Celi) to help him find Diabolik -- with a set of beautiful emeralds as the bait for Diabolik's beautiful girlfriend Eva (Marisa Mell). The mob and the police lay an elaborate trap to capture Eva, knowing that Diabolik will walk right in. But Diabolik has some interesting tricks up his sleeve, and eludes capture oncea again. The government makes a last-ditch effort to keep their assets safe from Diabolik, and Ginko closes in on the master thief. In a way, "Danger Diabolik" seems a bit like a Sixties allegory -- Diabolik steals from the stuffy government, and retreats to his mod hideaway for some free love with Eva. Well, whatever. But there's no message at all to this light-hearted action flick. And while some parts of it feel a bit too Bondian, Bava presents it all in a sort of relaxed, don't-take-this-seriously manner. The dialogue tends to be second fiddle to the action and twisting plots, which reach the ultimate twist just seconds before "The End" rolls. Bava eschewed his standard style in this one -- it's all eye-candy, full of plastic minidresses, twirling beds, silver welding suits, Marianne Faithfull hair some totally gratuitous body shots of Eva and Diabolik. But he also injects some sly comedy, such as when Diabolik releases laughing gas during a live teleconference. Law is a bit wooden, but his biggest acting demand is looking intense; Mell is more animated as his pretty partner in crime (and it's nice to see a dashing antihero with a loving monogamous relationship). And Bava shows his skill with the characters by having Ginko and Diabolik grudgingly respect each other, even as they try to outwit each other. A fun, colourful action flick, "Danger: Diabolik" is a slice of the Swinging Sixties at their most colourful, but without an ounce of heavy material. Diabolikal!

CHEESY, But from another time!:
I really enjoyed this movie! The effects are very dated, but watching it transported me to another time! You can see how different things where just 30 years ago!