The Castle of Fu Manchu

The Castle of Fu Manchu (Die Folterkammer des Dr. Fu Man Chu, El castillo de Fu-Manchu) is a 1969 film and the fifth and final Dr. Fu Manchu film with Christopher Lee portraying the title character. The film, directed by Jesús Franco, is an English-language coproduction between companies from various European countries including the UK, Spain and West Germany.

The film is also known as Assignment Istanbul.

Plot
Supercriminal Dr. Fu Manchu plots to freeze the world's oceans with a diabolical new device. With his beautiful but evil daughter, Lin Tang, his army of dacoits, and the help of the local crime organization led by Omar Pasha (whom Dr. Fu Manchu double-crosses), Dr. Fu Manchu takes over the governor's castle in Istanbul, which has a massive opium reserve, to control the largest opium port in Anatolia, since the drug is an important ingredient for the fuel for his machine. Dr. Fu Manchu needs the help of an intelligent scientist with an ailing heart whom he has imprisoned. In order to keep the scientist alive, he kidnaps a doctor and his wife to give the scientist a heart transplant from one of his obedient servants. Opposing him from Britain's branch of Interpol are his nemeses, Nayland Smith and Dr. Petrie.

Cast
Uncredited:
 * Christopher Lee as Fu Manchu
 * Tsai Chin as Lin Tang
 * Maria Perschy as Dr. Ingrid Koch
 * Richard Greene as Nayland Smith
 * Howard Marion-Crawford as Dr. Petrie
 * Günther Stoll as Dr. Curt Kessler
 * Rosalba Neri as Lisa
 * José Manuel Martín as Omar Pasha
 * Werner Aprelat as Melnik
 * Mike Brendel as Pasha's Gunman
 * Jesús Franco as Inspector Hamid
 * Herbert Fux as Governor
 * Osvaldo Genazzani as Sir Robert
 * Burt Kwouk as Feng (archive footage from The Brides of Fu Manchu)
 * Gustavo Re as Professor Heracles
 * Gene Reyes as Hamid's Aide
 * Moisés Augusto Rocha as Fu's Henchman

Production
The film was shot in Istanbul and Barcelona.

Home media
Blue Underground released the film on DVD under The Christopher Lee Collection in 2003.

Reception
The film is considered the worst of the Fu-Manchu series with Lee.

In popular culture
In 1992, The Castle of Fu Manchu was featured in Mystery Science Theater 3000 (Season 3, Episode 23). Towards the end, Joel Hodgson comments that Roger Ebert liked the movie; however, in 1993 Ebert stated he had "never seen it."