Customer Reviews

Mysterious Doctor Satan [VHS]

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Legend has it that this was going to be the first Superman serial, but negotiations between Republic and DC broke down (Columbia would later do two Superman serials, with cartoon flying sequences). So the villain, clever enough to checkmate even the Man of Steel, was elevated to title status and a hero of the Masked Marvel mode replaced him. The result is still fine, with heroine Ella Neal retaining the "Lois" name and secondary heroine Dorothy Hebert showing riding and stunting expertise that makes you wish you saw more of her. After seeing Republic's outstanding Captain Marvel serial, though, one wonders what Superman would be like with the studios special effects experts.

This wonderfully produced, unusually well-acted (for a serial) benefits by the bravura performance of legendary bad boy Eduardo Cianelli. His voice alone in this one chills the soul, his dark eyes are filled with evil. He's suave, dapper, and completely beleivable as that 'Mysterious Doctor Satan.' Equally as good, though, is now forgotten B-actor Robert Wilcox. He was once married, believe it or not, to tragic saturated alcoholic/actress Diana Barrymore. But since he was also reputed to be an alcoholic, this probably contributed to his fast demise. But in this serial, he's wonderful. Wilcox possessed a haunting, deep voice. Doll-faced Ella Neal is also a perfect 40s heroine. She's so pretty, slender and surreal that she's perfect as the heroine. The robot isn't all that sinister but the William Witney-John English direction keeps this masterpice racing along with a terific score by (I may be wrong) Cy Feur. This great matinee entertainment deserves to be on the shelf of any nostalgia buff and ardent fan of Republic Serials!

For Anyone looking for the Saturday Afternoon serial at it's Finest, Here it is. The Best Serial( I'll also allow The Adventures of Captain Marvel) by the only studio that really knew how to make them (Republic).Featuring the Best Stunts from the best stuntmen in the business, "Dr Satan" moves at a relentless pace for 15 thrilling chapters. Eduardo Cianelli( the memorable Thuggee priest in "Gunga Din") is the coolest villain in film history before Dr. Hannibal Lecter (same alma mater?). The Copperhead has to be the most practical hero in the business (No matter what he's wearing, all he has to do is put on the mask and tah dah). And it features the Debut of the Republic Robot!! What more do ya want??!! Side Note- I first saw this serial on "Saturday Night at the Movies" hosted by Elwy Yost, whose son Graham wrote a little number called "Speed"...the central plot device of which is very similar to something that happens in the first chapter of "Dr Satan"...Coincidence? I think not...

Republic Pictures present "MYSTERIOUS DOCTOR SATAN" (1940) (269 mins/B&W) (Dolby digitally remastered) --- is a 15-Chapter Republic Movie Serial starring Eduardo Cianelli, Robert Wilcox, Ella Neal, William Newell & C. Montague Shaw, relive those thrilling days week after week venue brought you to the theater, as you were mesmerized in your seat waiting for the final chapter ... exciting action within 15 episodes from the Republic Serials department, released in December 13, 1940, the plot line follows "The Copperhead" a hooded crime fighter is out to thwart the evil designs of criminal mastermind, Doctor Satan, who plans to enslave the world with an army of remote controlled robots ... this has to be one of Republic's best with cliff hanging galore, David Sharpe has never been more on his toes than this serial with some of the fantastic stunts ... Eduardo Cinannelli shares his scene stealing performances with all the villainy there is in the Doctor Satan character ... the once fabulous Republic Studio serial machine turned out true masterpieces of action during the late 30s and early 40s ... remember this serial from the Saturday double features at our neighborhood theater ... 15 breathtaking chapters come across with all the gusto Republic Studios has to offer.

Under William Witney (Director), John English (Director), Hiram S. Brown Jr (Associate Producer), Franklin Adreon (Screenwriter), Ronald Davidson (Screenwriter), Norman S. Hall (Screenwriter), Joseph F. Poland (Screenwriter), Barney A. Sarecky (Screenwriter), Sol Shor (Screenwriter), Cy Feuer (Original Score), William Nobles (Cinematographer), William P. Thompson (Editor), Edward Todd (Editor) ------ the cast includes Eduardo Ciannelli (Doctor Satan),
Robert Wilcox (Bob Wayne/'Copperhead'), William Newell (Speed Martin), C. Montague Shaw (Prof. Thomas Scott), Ella Neal (Lois Scott), Dorothy Herbert (Alice Brent), Jack Mulhall (Police Chief Rand), Edwin Stanley (Col. Bevans), Walter McGrail (Stoner, thug leader), Joe McGuinn (Gort, a thug), Bud Geary (Hallett, a thug), Archie Twitchell (Ross, airport radio operator), Lynton Brent (Scarlett, a thug), Ken Terrell (Corwin, a thug), Al Taylor (Joe, a thug ), John Bagni (Gray, Pick-up Thug), James Bush (Co-Pilot), Yakima Canutt (Sailor at Winch), Ed Cassidy (Barton), Tristram Coffin (Wells, the Governor's secretary), Frank Conklin (Station Master Burns), Eddie Dew (Gas Station Attendant), Frank Ellis (Plant Henchman), Jack O'Shea (House Heavy), Eddie Parker (Chuck, lead truck thug), Hal Price (P&G Warehouse Mgr), David Sharpe (unknown), Tom Steele (Truck Henchman), Duke Taylor (Watkins, fire escape thug), Wally West (Palmer, a thug), Bill Wilkus (Truck Henchman), Bud Wolfe (Sailor at Cable) ... great stunt work by the Republic stunt personnel David Sharpe (stunt double: Robert Wilcox/The Copperhead), James Fawcett (stunt double: William Newell), Helen Thurston (stunt double: Dorothy Herbert), Eddie Parker (stunt double), Tom Steele (stunt double), Duke Taylor (stunts), Wally West (stunts), Bud Wolfe (stunts) --- don't leave the theater until the final chapter ... another winner from the vaults of Republic Serials --- this is a must watch for the serial buffs in all of us.

BIOS:
1. Eduardo Ciannelli
Date of birth: 30 August 1889 - Ischia, Italy
Date of death: 8 October 1969 - Rome, Italy

2. Robert Wilcox
Date of birth: 19 May 1910 - Rochester, New York
Date of death: 11 June 1955 - New York

3. David Sharpe (Crown prince of stuntmen)
Date of birth: 2 February 1910 - St. Louis, Missouri
Date of death: 30 March 1980 - Altadena, California

Special footnote, Sharpe was one of the famous members of Republic's
stable of stuntmen. Republic would often have him doing double duty playing
his own character and also doubling for other actors in the same film
Probably holds the honor of being in more films (albeit, often uncredited as a stuntman)
than any other person in Hollywood history. Sharpe's film/TV resume, if complete, would
likely total more than 5000 entries. Ranks with Yakima Canutt as Hollywood's premier stuntman.
Sharpe was inducted in the Hollywood Stuntman's Hall of Fame in 1980.

4. William Witney (aka: William Nuelsen Witney) (Director)
Date of birth: 15 May 1915 - Lawton, Oklahoma
Date of death: 17 March 2002 - Jackson, California

Special footnote, Witney broke into the business in 1933, working at Mascot, the leading producer
of low-budget serials, Mascot merged in 1935 to form Republic,Witney teamed with director John English
on many of the era's best serials, most of them highlighted by kinetic fight and chase scenes that helped
change the face of action moviemaking...Witney became a director at 21, he was Hollywood's youngest.

5. John English (Director)
Date of birth: 25 June 1903 - Cumberland, England, UK
Date of death: 11 October 1969 - Los Angeles, California

Special footnote, directing classic serials "Zorro Rides Again" (1937),
"Daredevils of the Red Circle" (1939), "King of the Royal Mounted" (1940),
"Adventures of Red Ryder" (1940), "Jungle Girl" (1941),"Adventures of Captain Marvel" (1941),
and "Captain America" (1944), worked closely with director William Witney over the years.

If you're into vintage serials as I am, why not pick up a copy of the following titles from VCI Home Video:
VCI CLIFFHANGER TRAILERS:
1. Adventures of Red Ryder (Don "Red" Barry)
2. Adventures of the Flying Cadets (Bobby Jordan)
3. Buck Rogers (Buster Crabbe)
4. Captain Midnight (Dave O'Brien)
5. Captain Video: Master of the Stratosphere (Judd Holdren & I. Stanford Jolley)
6. Dick Tracy's G-Men (Ralph Byrd)
7. Don Winslow of the Navy (Don Terry)
8. Don Winslow of the Coast Guard (Don Terry)
9. Drums of Fu Manchu (Henry Brandon)
10.Fighting Kit Carson (Johnny Mack Brown)
11.Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe (Buster Crabbe)
12.The Green Archer (Victory Jory)
13.Jungle Girl (Frances Gifford)
14.Jungle Jim (Grant Withers & Raymond Hatton)
15.The Lost City (Kane Richmond, William Stage Boyd & George Gabby Hayes)
16.Lost City of the Jungle (Russell Hayden & Keye Luke)
17.Mandrake the Magician (Warren Hull & Dick Curtis)
18.Miracle Rider (Tom Mix & Tony Jr)
19.The Painted Stallion (Ray "Crash" Corrigan)
20.The Phantom (Tom Tyler)
21.The Return of Chandu (Bela Lugosi)
22.Riders of Death Valley (Dick Foran, Leo Carrillo & Buck Jones)
23.Secret Agent X-9 (1937) (Scott Kolk & Henry Brandon)
24.Secret Agent X-9 (1945) (Lloyd Bridges & Keye Luke)
25.Sky Raiders (Donald Woods & Billy Halop)
26.Undersea Kingdom (Ray "Crash" Corrigan)
27.Winners of the West (Dick Foran, Harry Woods, Roy Barcroft & Charles Stevens)
28.Zane Greys "King of the Royal Mounted" (Allan "Rocky" Lane)
29.Zorro's Cliffhanger Collection (Reed Hadley, John Carroll & Linda Stirling)

Hats off and thanks to Les Adams (collector/guideslines for character identification), Chuck Anderson (Webmaster: The Old Corral/B-Westerns.Com), Boyd Magers (Western Clippings), Bobby J. Copeland (author of "Trail Talk"), Rhonda Lemons (Empire Publishing Inc), Bob Nareau (author of "The Real Bob Steele") and Trevor Scott (Down Under Com) as they have rekindled my interest once again for B-Westerns and Serials --- looking forward to more high quality releases from the vintage serial era of the '20s, '30s & '40s and B-Westerns ... order your copy now from Amazon where there are plenty of copies available on VHS, stay tuned once again for top notch action mixed with deadly adventure --- if you enjoyed this title, why not check out VCI Entertainment where they are experts in releasing B-Westerns and Serials --- all my heroes have been cowboys!

Total Time: 269 mins on VHS ~ Republic Video ~ (5/30/1995)

Republic made the best serials particularly from 1939 to 1943 (their goden age) and this serial is one of their best. A bravura performance from Eduardo Cianelli, breakneck action, a rousing music score and top direction from William Witney and John English make this a winner all the way. It's too bad another superb serial from the same year--Drums of Fu Manchu--is not available on commercial video. Rated solely against other serials I give it 4 stars.

Others have said a lot about this classic...I want to point out the almost film noir mood of much of the serial, and a nicely ironic ending. There was considerable thought put into this serial. The only puzzling factor in it is the reference in the first chapter to the Copperhead's prior existence as an alter ego of the hero's father, but apparantly the character was not used in any other serial to the best of my knowledge.

After years of a distinct memory of a serial seen only once, I finally located the title and was able to purchase it. I had a vision of the "Copperhead" leaping onto a moving car from a hill and low and behold it was a "still" on the box. While the acting was less than stellar and the story line full of holes, it still made "Flash Gordon" even more cheesy. It was a hoot to watch how two different endings to each cliff hanger were filmed. One for the end of the episode and a slightly different one for the beginning of the next. All in all it was fun and worth the hunt to find it again. Once I located the title, I have to agree with others who praised " The Mysterious Doctor Satan" as one of the best of a genre which was on it's way out.