Danger: Diabolik (1968) was adapted from a comic that has been a
social phenomenon in Italy for over fifty years, featuring a masked
master criminal--part Fantomas, part James Bond--and his elegant
companion Eva Kant. The film partially reinvents the character as a
countercultural prankster, subverting public officials and the national
economy, and places him in a luxurious and futuristic underground
hideout and Eva in a series of unforgettable outfits. A commercial
disappointment on its original release, Danger: Diabolik's reputation
has grown along with that of its director, Mario Bava, the
quintessential cult auteur, while the pop-art glamour of its costumes
and sets have caught the imagination of such people as Roman Coppola and
the Beastie Boys.
This study examines its status as a comic-book movie, including its
relation both to the original fumetto and to its sister-film,
Barbarella. It traces its production and initial reception in Italy,
France, the U.S., and the U.K., and its cult afterlife as both a pop-art
classic and campy "bad film" featured in the final episode of Mystery
Science Theatre 3000.