One of the worst movies I've ever seen

The movie's not perfect, but it sticks the landing of its message. It was engaging - thrilling at times - and I personally thought it was a great time.

Story: It's very simple but honestly that is fine.

A clunky actioner with a handful of cool moments.

Paramount had Dorothy Lamour; MGM had Hedy Lamarr, and universal had Maria Montez. She had been around for a few years when she made what is considered one of the biggest camp- fests in Hollywood history. You can keep your Jane Hudson and your Neely O'Hara's. Montez is two characters here, and it's a battle of good versus evil as they fight over the throne of a mystical kingdom where cobra rules, and the jewel is all powerful. In Technicolor, Montez is unforgettable. She's of course more fun to watch being evil, and as the youngest of twins, she is determined to hang onto her power no matter what. But after being separated from her older sister, she is determined not to be dethroned, even dealing with her grandmother Mary Nash who knows the truth. Once again, Montez has Sabu and Jon Hall as co-stars, protecting the kindly older sister, while Lon Chaney Jr. is branded to protect evil. Who can forget the scene of the evil Montez dancing around, dramatically pointing out victims for the sacrifice towards King Cobra, and the scene where the heavily accented Montez screeching, "Gif me da cobra jewel!" Montez goes beyond the visual of "She who must be obeyed" to create one of the most fascinating characters ever.

This is an absolutely unashamed B-movie... and about as sophisticated as can be expected of any picture featuring a beautiful, wicked snake-priestess, human sacrifice into a volcano, good and evil twins separated in infancy, a gigantic mute assassin, a lost heir(ess), a cobra-worshipping cult and a pet ape wearing a skirt for decency! It's technicoloured in more ways than one -- this is the pulp fantasy material of boys' comic papers come to life, and wouldn't be out of place as a lost novel by Robert Howard or Rider Haggard. Just about everyone sports a bare midriff at the slightest provocation, most of the women spend the entire picture clad in a skimpy band of material round their top half, and Sabu wears next to nothing throughout thanks to a magnificent young physique.As the reader may have gathered, most of it is unabashed fun. There are a couple of suggestions that hint at something deeper: the idea that perhaps Tollea really ought to stay and improve life for her people instead of marrying her rescuer, for example (though the final outcome makes sense -- she was only ever herself a pawn in the hands of the would-be reformers, after all), and, despite the missionary upbringing of the main protagonists, an unexpected treatment of the cobra cult as a genuine religion, where offending the Powers can have consequences and people deserve to worship as they see fit.The special effects are rather better on the costume front than they are where dangerous items are concerned, although there is a brave attempt at showing an advancing lava front by merely illustrating its effects, which works surprisingly well. The dialogue veers wildly between pidgin and fluent English as spoken by the same character at different times (sometimes within the same speech) -- it would be nice to think that this reflected an attempt to show whether they are trying to communicate in English or addressing others in their own native tongue, but I suspect it wasn't thought out in that much detail! Otherwise, the main criticism I'd make is that the final fight goes on perceptibly too long and in too repetitive a way: it could, with advantage and with more credibility, have been cut by several minutes to provide a more explosive climax.But the film is thoroughly enjoyable for what it is. It has no pretensions to be anything more, and the characters generally look as if they're having a good time (when not being tortured, threatened with death, etc.) Sabu plays the hero's mischievous sidekick without a hint of embarrassment and tends to steal every scene in which he appears. Lon Chaney Jr has presence. Maria Montez plays a naive South Seas islander and a power-crazed priestess with aplomb and smoulders out of the screen (her snake dance in a scintillating costume is definitely a memorable scene).Jon Hall makes an engaging romantic lead, though the plot suggests that the character is perhaps more honest than bright: his approach is generally to walk straight into danger and hope that circumstances will work out in his favour. Occasionally they do (this is the sort of film, after all, where you can walk straight into the inner sanctums of the palace after changing clothes with a high official, and nobody so much as notices) but generally he needs rescuing from the consequences! I wouldn't actually describe this an unmissable camp classic, not because it's too bad but because it isn't. It's a perfectly good piece of entirely escapist entertainment which was never intended to be taken seriously, and while it has zero emotional depth it's easy on the eye.

A grand example of Hollywood delirium, and a major influence on 60s filmmakers including Jack Smith, Andy Warhol and John Waters. Maria Montez plays twin sisters---one good, one evil---vying to be queen of Cobra Island, a dazzlingly lush tropical location. Actually filmed on location in Laguna Beach. Some think of Montez as the first method actress in the movies, which is to say that she took her roles so seriously that she was known to act as if she had 'become' her character even to the point of appearing off-screen in full costume and expecting to be treated as some sort of exotic royalty. Now that's entertainment!

To many, this film will seem pretty silly and insignificant. I admit it. But, for what it was, it was one of the best. This film was meant to be a silly escapist film--not a "big" movie but a B-movie meant to entertain the kids and adults alike. And, it was a major step up from the average B-western (which, after seeing a few, looked the same). And the audiences loved these silly, yet magical films. This happens to be one of my favorites. Before I even saw it, I saw a publicity photo of the very sultry Maria Montez as the Cobra Woman--dressed in a turban, evening gown and lounging across a giant cobra statue. Considering I was about 13 or so, I think I fell in love! I HAD to see this hot lady in the film! Well, when I finally located a video of it years later, I finally had my chance (though by then, I had found my own "Cobra Woman" and didn't have quite the same pressing need as when I was a teen). It was silly but intensely exciting--with lots of action, campiness and Jon Hall as the only man virile enough to tame this "she-beast"! I loved it and wanted to see it again--it was magical and just plain fun! See it and enjoy unless you are a super-sophisticated person. I love foreign films and art films but sometimes I just gotta have some mindless B-movie fun!