Das Geheimnis der gelben Narzissen

THE DEVIL'S DAFFODIL is a packed-to-the-brim Edgar Wallace krimi, made in Germany but filmed in the UK. It's the kind of film that you have to watch closely because the plot is very dense and just working out who's who and the relationships between the characters is tricky indeed. Still, there's plenty to recommend about this one, not least the moody black and white photography and the antics of a knife-wielding masked killer who adds plenty of thrills to the picture.

Cast-wise, chiefly of interest is none other than Christopher Lee, once again playing a Chinese guy. I'm not sure why Lee always ended up cast as an Oriental but he certainly makes for an imposing presence here and it's nice to see him playing a good guy for a change. He's a Charlie Chan-style investigator, prone to reciting proverbs at the most inconvenient times. He's a real hoot.

Lee is supported by an erstwhile cast, including the familiar faces of Walter Gotell and Marius Goring, and there's a nice turn from a typically twitchy Klaus Kinski, just in the process of becoming a big star in Germany. THE DEVIL'S DAFFODIL is an unashamed B-movie throughout, and one that has much in common with the British thrillers of the 1950s that were being churned out by Nettlefold Studios and the like. However, the low budget is put to fine use and there's certainly never a dull moment here.