Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe

It's unlikely that the great GW Pabst would have been overjoyed to discover that footage from his classic mountain film The White Hell of Piz Palu had found its way into the third and final serial featuring Alex Raymond's interstellar hero. However, the Frigia sequences considerably enhance an otherwise lacklustre adventure in which "Buster" Crabbe heads for the Planet Mongo to prevent Charles Middleton's merciless Ming from plaguing Earth with the Purple Death. Ford Beebe and Ray Taylor direct with brio, but there's an end-of-era feel about the proceedings, confirmed by Ming's obliteration in the final reel.