Danger: Diabolik

[Kooshmeister]

The general consensus from most people seems to be that any movie featured on MST3K is automatically crap, but every so often the show riffs on movies that I don't think are too bad by themselves. Gorgo and It Conquered the World, for example. However Danger: Diabolik (simply Diabolik in the version they used) is the one movie they've riffed that I saw on the show first, and sought out by itself afterwards.

The uncut, redubbed version of the film released on DVD by Paramount is, to me, not a half-bad film, and a good example of how to do a movie whose script intentionally contains no likable characters, without making it (too) tasteless.

Plus, any movie where explosive decompression in a plane is halted with chewing gum is just goofy enough to be lovable no matter what in my book. :)

[RapscallionJones]

I actually saw this independent of MST before I saw it with Mike and the Bots ragging on it and I was a little disappointed that chose that one because it's not really a bad movie.  Taken out of context, it's f**king absurd, which is what MST did, but this is a trippy Mario Bava riff on comic books.  Euro-comics never seem to translate well to American audiences, so I can understand where most people get hung up on this movie.  All of the French and Italian comics that I'm familiar with feature nasty anti-heroes like Diabolik, Dobermann and Dylan Dog (Dylan Dog actually isn't a bad guy, the comic is still really dark, though).

I also love that late 60's euro-aesthetic.  Everything is smooth, with rounded corners, like it was all stolen from the set of The Prisoner.

I need to find a copy of this movie and watch it again.  It's been a while since I've seen it.

[JaseSF]

Personally I think most of the movies on MST3K aren't anywhere near as bad as most of today's output. Honestly that's exactly how I feel.

[lester1/2jr]

It was a cool movie, especially the girl.