Mandrake, le magicien

While not made with an over-powering budget by any standards and populated with the dime-store variety of plot devices, mediocre special effects, and bearable, workmanlike performers, the Columbia serial Mandrake the Magician has many fun, entertaining moments and is quite thrilling at times. Isn't that what a serial is suppose to be? Warren Hull plays the dapper Mandrake in top hat and tails and seemingly an expert in every field and every form of fisticuffs. With him is his faithful Lothar, a servant who like Mandrake can fight at will and ease under any circumstances. Of course when Lothar fights - the actor playing him Al Kikume is easily seen not to be fighting as the stunt double looks nothing like him. That is just one of a host of problems with the serial in terms of direction, production, and cinematic achievement. Routinely actors are poorly doubled. Fight scenes are nothing more in some instances than actors playing patty-cake with their fists. The identity of the serial villain - the Wasp - is clearly evident in the final three or four chapters. The leading lady - Doris Weston - is as bland as cottage cheese. When would the parade of henchmen end? And some of the storyline about "a machine invented by Professor Houston to benefit mankind"(you remember those catch phrases once you have heard it 12 different times at the beginning of each chapter)was utterly ridiculous with all that nonsense about shutting off/destroying public works so as to let the Wasp take over the world and the platinite(don't ask) needed to fuel it. But despite all these things, Mandrake the Magician is a lot of fun to watch, and I must confess that for at least the first 9 chapters I had to find out who the Wasp was as three of Mandrake's circle were framed so as to suggest each one. Each episode left with some great calamity, and this serial is definitely worth a peek.

Mandrake, the Magician features a dashing, young hero who may not have any super-powers to speak of, but, being a magician (the worlds' best, of course) he does manage to foil the bad guys with a well-timed magic trick, or two. And if that happens to fail, Mandrake can certainly be counted on to throw a mean punch, sometimes heroically taking on up to five of The Wasp's ruthless henchmen all at one time.

Presented in 12 super-exciting chapters, this enjoyable, 1939 "Cliffhanger" has Mandrake and his loyal pals taking on The Wasp, a dastardly evil criminal, who will stop at nothing in order to get his greedy hands on Prof. Houston's amazing radium-energy machine.

For plenty of laughs and excitement, check out all of the B-Grade action!

"Mandrake, the Magician"(1939 - 214 minutes - 12 episodes), is one of the classics B&W cinema serials of Columbia, directed by Sam Nelson and Norman Deming. Based on the known Comics created by Lee Falk and Phill Davis in 1924 and written by Joseph F. Poland, Basil Dickey and Ned Dandy. Mandrake (the actor Warren Hull) is a sagacious detective who is traveling in a maritime cruise when he knows the professor Hudson (the actor Forbes Murray), the author of a machine that uses the energy of the radio waves. Developed for the good, the powerful device becomes a dangerous weapon when it falls in the hands of an evil genius known as "Wasp". Mandrake and his faithful assistant, Lothar (the actor Al Kikume), will fight Wasp and his gang, living an intensely battle between the good and the evil. The Mandrake's dress style with the black and red layer, ternary and top-hat, had immortalized the figure of the magician. The English word "Mandrake" is the name of a root that was always associated with magical powers and miraculous cures. Lothar was an African prince and one of the first black character treated in a serious way in Comic books, he was always considered as an intelligent and loyal ally. With original special effects for that time, the film deserves reverence to the great performance of Warren Hull, that gave life to one of the biggest icons of the Comic books of all times.

"Mandrake" is a cinema series in twelve chapters released on DVD:

Chapter 1 – Shadow on the Wall: Mandrake (Warren Hull) is traveling on board of the S.S. Mohawk to meet his friend and associate Professor Houston (Forbes Murray), who has developed a powerful radium machine. Mandrake is bringing the material Platonite that is essential for its operation. However Prof. Houston is abducted by the gangsters of the kingpin Wasp when he is preparing to demonstrate the machine to his colleagues.

Chapter 2 – Trap of the Wasp: Mandrake fight against a gangster that is robbing the machine and the criminal explodes an oxygen vessel to escape. Mandrake follows a lead with his assistant Lothar (Al Kikume) expecting to find Prof. Houston, but it is a trap of the Wasp; however Mandrake gets away from the house. The Wasp needs Platonite to make the machine works and Mandrake plots a scheme to find Prof. Houston pretending that he has the material. The gangsters abduct Mandrake.

Chapter 3 – A City of Terror: The plan does not work and Mandrake captures the gangster Brown to interrogate him, but his house is bugged and the criminals kill Brown. Meanwhile Prof. Houston is prisoner in the Wasp headquarter at the Green Valley Rest Home. The Wasp sends a fake Prof. Fred Leland named Reagan to hypnotize Mandrake, but the magician foresees his intentions. Betty is kidnapped by the gangsters of the Wasp in a radio broadcasting station.

Chapter 4 – The Secret Passage: The Wasp uses the machine to destroy the radio station but Mandrake and Lothar rescue Betty from the debris. Mandrake seeks out Reagan and Tommy discovers where he is. But the gangsters listen to Tommy through the microphone and head to the Mill River Inn to protect the hypnotist.

Chapter 5 - The Devil's Playmate: Mandrake uses a radio detector to find the microphone hidden at his home. He lures the gangsters telling that the formula of Platonite is hidden in his bank and captures the criminal Blair. Mandrake discovers that the Wasp wants to destroy the Interstate Power House. He heads with Lothar to the place but they are overcome by the gang of the Wasp.

Chapter 6 – The Fatal Crash: Mandrake and Lothar manage to escape from the power house and the Wasp punishes the gangster that tied Mandrake. Prof. Houston contacts Mandrake but he does not know where he is trapped but he gives a clue. Mandrake takes his plane to travel faster to the spot where he believes his friend is but he is shot and his plane crashes.

Chapter 7 - Gamble for Life: Mandrake escapes from the death using the parachute and rescues Prof. Houston. Now Houston intends to build a new machine while Mandrake goes with Lothar and Webster to bring Platonite. But they discover the gang of the Wasp destroying the property and they try to stop them.

Chapter 8 – Across the Deadline: Two criminals come to Mandrake's house telling that they will repair the telephone line and Betty lets them in. They actually want to steal Platonite, but when Mandrake arrives, the guys flee. Then the Wasp blows up the dam and Mandrake and Lothar are surprised by the water when they are getting Plantonite in the canyon.

Chapter 9 – Terror Rides the Rails: Mandrake asks for a clue about the Wasp in a gas station and when he is ready to receive information, the gangsters blow up the place. Mandrake, Lothar and Webster escape from the criminals and the magician and his assistant take the train. However the Wasp uses the machine against the train causing an accident.

Chapter 10 – The Unseen Monster: Mandrake is taken unconscious by men of the Wasp and brought in an ambulance to his headquarter in the Green Valley Rest Home. Webster is also captured by the criminals. Meanwhile his friends are seeking Mandrake out and they reach the Green Valley. Betty is abducted but Mandrake escapes and meets her. But the Wasp explodes the wing to where they are running to escape.

Chapter 11 – At the Stroke of Eight: Mandrake and Betty meets their friends outside the sanatorium. Mandrake and Webster find a secret passage that ends in a garage. The Wasp tries to destroy Mandrake house with his friends inside.

Chapter 12 – The Reward of Treachery: The house collapses but everybody survives. Prof. Houston and Mandrake suspect that one of their friends is the Wasp. Who might be the Wasp?

"Mandrake, the Magician" is a naive adventure based on the newspaper comic strip created by Lee Falk, who is also the author of The Phantom. However Mandrake and Lothar of this movie are very different from the cartoons. There is no Narda, the costumes are not like in the strip and Mandrake spends most of the time in car races or coming to blows with criminals instead of using his hypnotic technique to fight. The music score annoys after 215 minutes running time. In times of home theaters, it is impressive to think that the audiences had to go to the movie theaters to follows the chapters of the movie. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "Mandrake, o Mágico" ("Mandrake, the Magician")

If you have stumbled upon this title and think you will see the hero of your comic book youth brought to the screen you will be disappointed. Mandrake has been shoehorned into a stock serial plot that could have used any one of a dozen heroes from Batman to Dick Tracy. Once again, a wonder invention cooked up by a solitary recluse in his basement is stolen from a mostly unguarded private residence and now the world is threatened. The police and the FBI are apparently helpless so it falls upon Mandrake to set things right. Alas, this Mandrake is a pale imitation of the comic wizard. The hypnotically gesturing magus of the comics has become a stage magician, doing card tricks on an ocean liner. Instead of confusing his enemies with black magic, he slugs it out with his fists, implausibly whipping two or three thugs at once, all without displacing his top hat.

This is not to say the serial isn't entertaining. But most will likely view it as a 70 year old curiosity rather than the exciting thriller it was meant to be. Whether you want to invest almost 4 hours of your life watching it is the question. Incidentally, the title music would later be reused in the Columbia serial "The Vigilante, Fighting Hero of the West" in a somewhat re-orchestrated form. The story, of course, would be recycled again and again.