Hokey, campy, and highly entertaining. This movie is a bit more of a thriller along the lines of Indiana Jones than it is a horror film, but there are many cool touches packed into its 68 minutes. The race is on to get to the tomb of Genghis Khan, and we first see Boris Karloff in the role of Fu Manchu with his exaggerated facial features further distorted in a convex mirror, sporting absurdly long fingernails, and drinking a bubbly, steaming concoction. Later we'll see him torturing a captive with a giant gong, and presiding over an operating room which has lizards and snakes clamoring to get out of jars, a giant python, and a tarantula he extracts poison from. The sinister operation is presided over by the inscrutable Myrna Loy with her cat-like face, calming smoking what appears to be a hookah, as well as a bunch of bare-chested African-American guys on pedestals with arms crossed. Injections are needed for one of the captives to make him Loy's "more than willing slave, until of course she tires of him" – loved that. There are also a couple of death traps that will remind you of 007 films from 30 years later, including an alligator pit, and how can you not love a laser scene from 1932? It's all truly over the top, and the sets are fantastic.Is the film racist? Well, yes, but I found it less disturbing than others from the time period. Despite the whitewashing of Hollywood – Karloff, Loy, and other Caucasians in Asian roles – I liked the strength of their characters, in direct contrast to the more common fawning, servile roles. Then again, Karloff bellows "Kill the white man, and take his women!" towards the end, in what likely directly stoked the "yellow fear" of the day. Still, I took more offense to the gap-tooth, goofy waiter ringing the dinner bell at the end, than I did to Karloff or Loy. You have to be able to forgive the filmmakers a bit, but if you can, I think you'll enjoy this one too.

Wondering at the perceived peculiarities of Fu-Manchu and his followers, Nayland Smith wonders aloud, "Will we ever understand these Eastern races?" This statement is ironic because he is surrounded by Asians— during the excavation, as well as in everyday society. If the Westerners truly wanted to learn more and understand the Easterners, all they would have to do is ask. They are unable to realize the proximity of such first-hand knowledge because of their preconceived, inaccurate notions about the East, which are especially apparent in the book. The Westerners, while claiming to be cultured and refined, seem unable to change their prejudices regarding the East. The dismissive phrase "these Eastern races" shows their inability in viewing and appreciating the East for what it actually is— a massive area with a massive number of unique cultures and people. Smith's statement is further ironic in that he, as well as his companions, are well-educated scientists. They claim the right to Genghis Khan's mask and sword for the good of their research. The fact that such academics are unable to realize the wealth of information that actual, living Asians, as opposed to non- sentient artifacts, could provide them with, is further laughable. Instead, they label the Easterners as something to be avoided and dismissed, to the point of congratulating an illiterate Asian servant for being uneducated. The film itself is entertaining: that is, until you begin to analyze what the underlying message really is, in regards to how Westerners regard Eastern culture.

In comparison to the original Sax Rohmer novel that the movie is based off of, the film provides an interesting perspective. When reading the novel, one can only imagine what the characters and settings look like. In the film, I was particularly intrigued about the use of Caucasian actors/actresses to portray the characters from the Orient, including Dr. Fu Manchu himself. Actors who were actually of Asian decent were only given non-speaking roles, such as the laborers who help the British dig for Genghis Kahn's grave. The movie utilizes many stereotypes about the East and this bias seemed to come across very clearly through the attempts of the white actors to portray the Eastern characters. While this made the plot a bit laughable, it also gave true insight to how the East was viewed from the British perspective.

Full disclosure: I laughed a lot during this movie and found it genuinely hilarious. With that said, I see a lot of comments that dismiss the the very blatant racist tropes to the times and sing the praises of this film as a cinematic classic. The makers of this film tried very hard to make Dr. Fu Manchu a villain and displays all the tropes that would come to be classic in the greatest villains of cinema. World domination? Check. Torture devices? Check. Mad science? Double check. A large part of his evil villain aura also happens to come from his exoticism. By exoticism I mean his Chinese-ness, what the book calls "the embodiment of the Yellow Peril". Early in the film he is even willing to sell his "ugly and insignificant" daughter to pursue his dreams of world domination. The mark of a true villain. Everything about his appearance and his speech is steeped in old-timey racist stereotypes, part humor part xenophobia. As I said before, I enjoyed the movie, and laughed quite a bit. But I know the difference between a good movie and a movie I enjoyed.