The Deathless Devil/Review

Welcome to the wild world of Turkish Pop Cinema! In today's episode, secret agent Tekin (Kunt Tulgar) is told from his superior, Yilmaz (Muzaffer Tema) that the deadly mastermind, Dr. Satan (Erol Tas) is on the loose. Doc Satan was responsible for the death of Tekin's father, who served justice and fought crime as the masked avenger known as "Copperhead". Yilmaz hands the Copperhead mask over to Tekin to carry the torch (All this exposition is delivered in less than 25 seconds!) Dr. Satan's diabolical plan is to steal a device called a lamp...Or a mine...I don't know, the engligh subtitles couldn't seem to make it's mind on what to call it. Anyway, this device created by Professor Dogan (Yalin Tolga) is some kind of remote control for airplanes. Who needs a pilot when you can just sit back at home and fly the plane from the comfort of your own home? Dr. Satan wants this device so he can flood airplanes with his killer home-made robots that will conquer the world!! (At least that's what I think his plan is)

So Tekin sets out to foil Doc Satan's evil schemes. Tek's joined by an obnoxious comic-relief agent, Bitik (Erol Günaydin) who tells his fellow agents that he'll put his Sherlock Holmes costume on to help solve the crime. Bitik may be irritatingly unfunny, but he keeps true to his word! He never takes that dang Shelock Holmes costume off for the rest of the movie! Not to be outdone, Tekin goes back and forth between fighting Dr. Satan and his henchmen with and without his Copperhead costume. AND he takes some time out to make the moves on the sexy topless, femme fatale, Ayla (Tijen Doray)! If only every other superhero movie these days could be this good....

If you're unfamilar with "Turkish pop cinema", try to imagine a film with:

• A Filipino budget
• A concept inspired by American serials from the 1940's
• The hyperactivity of a Hong Kong kung fu flick

If you've got the correct type of image in your head from that description, how could you possibly go wrong with this? Cult/Grindhouse gurus always appreciate the charm of cheapness in certain exploitation movies, but what they're really impressed by is if it's all done well. In this case, the hectic pace of this brilliant oddity manages to exceed expectations. Really, all you have to do is to just look at the sped-up, (And often) unchoreographed fights. The ridiculous design of the killer robot. The "Exploding" Henchmen. And the brilliant use of lifted--Or shall I say--stolen music cues delivered from the likes of Henry Mancini,John Barry, and Ennio Morricone. This all rounds up to an unbelievable experience where you don't have to be under the influence of controlled substances to enjoy some true cult material. Someone direct me to more Turkish Delight!

Reviewed by Laydback