Cheap Mandrake the Magician [Serial] (Video) (Hull, Weston, Kikume, Warren Hull) Price

Related Products

Customer Reviews of Mandrake the Magician [Serial]

Ace Columbia cliffhanger; note the repairs on Chapter 1
Columbia's cliffhangers tend to be campy or silly by serial standards, but this early effort (1939) is a very enjoyable adventure. The personable Warren Hull is excellent in the title role. Movie buffs will recognize many of the cast members from Columbia's "B" pictures and Three Stooges movies. Good direction by Sam Nelson and Norman Deming (who were usually assiatant directors) and slick production push this one head and shoulders above the general run of Columbia serials. A note about this video edition: the soundtrack of Chapter 1 was damaged, so the video producers hired actors and technicians to fake a new synchronized soundtrack. The repair job is rather distracting (the suave, pencil-mustached Kenneth MacDonald suddenly has a twangy Texas tenor), but most of the serial is intact. Tape is recorded at the standard-play speed, picture and sound are good. Highly typical of Saturday-matinee adventures, and a fine choice for first-time serial viewers or for fans who've never seen this long-unavailable film.