I like all of the Leslie Neilson comedies; he is a talented satirist. I believe this must have been one of his last dramatic roles before he realized he would be much more comfortable in comedy than in drama. There is even (spoiler alerts) a line from this film that predicts that event "Can't you be serious for even one minute?" The answer, of course, is no. There are a number of hilarious lines in this film that have more ham and baloney than a large German deli. One of my favorites is one from the police detective who actually says ".... Hmmm. One third of three is one". I swear to God he says this. More spoiler alerts: Neilson is cast as an 1890s sort of Bat Masterson occultist. That is funny in itself. The plot revolves around a Chinese/Indian/Mideast (they left nothing to chance) occultist, who is an evil twin. Now, try not to laugh at that. An Englishman plays an aged Chinese gentleman, which is both hilarious and racist at the same time. The evil twin looks like the Elephant Man on steroids. I can just imagine this film as a midnight special cult film at one of those revival houses in Greenwich Village. People could come dressed up as 1890s men and women, wear claws like the monster, and utter all the inane, silly, and fairly hilarious lines from the film with its pseudo-Taoist-Hindu malarkey. Real Taoist and Hindu philosophy has nothing at all to do with this baloney. So much fun to watch, I am going to see it again.
