Copyright 1947 by Latino Consortium Cinéma. French release through Ciné Selection. Paris opening at both the Gaumont and the Aubert: 11 November 1947.
SYNOPSIS: Near as I could figure the silly plot, Fantomas wants a million in gold, otherwise a million Parisians will die. Fantomas demonstrates his power by assassinating a leading official (a judge? a minister? the director of the Sûreté? – I wasn't following the boring, penny-dreadful plot all that closely – and anyway it turns out that he didn't murder him after all).
COMMENT: Most disappointing. I don't know which of many displeasures I should highlight first, but I'll start with Simone Signoret. Don't bother to see this movie if, like me, you're a Signoret fan. Despite her top billing (only Herrand the bland is billed above her), her nondescript role is both pitifully small and decidedly dowdy. Mousy Simone is evenly matched with Herrand the bland, who is about as menacing as the tooth fairy. With little effort, Alexandre Rignault, can walk all over him. So there's the whole plot of the movie shot to pieces in the first ten minutes. I'll admit there's plenty of action, but what's the use of it? Rignault could lick a cream puff like Herrand with his legs bound together and both hands tied behind his back. In fact, Herrand gets my vote as the weakest movie villain of all time. So what else is there to say? The movie was made on a top budget, with set changes galore, real locations and lots of extras milling around, but it's a nothing film! I rate it 3/10 purely for its curiosity appeal.
SYNOPSIS: Near as I could figure the silly plot, Fantomas wants a million in gold, otherwise a million Parisians will die. Fantomas demonstrates his power by assassinating a leading official (a judge? a minister? the director of the Sûreté? – I wasn't following the boring, penny-dreadful plot all that closely – and anyway it turns out that he didn't murder him after all).
COMMENT: Most disappointing. I don't know which of many displeasures I should highlight first, but I'll start with Simone Signoret. Don't bother to see this movie if, like me, you're a Signoret fan. Despite her top billing (only Herrand the bland is billed above her), her nondescript role is both pitifully small and decidedly dowdy. Mousy Simone is evenly matched with Herrand the bland, who is about as menacing as the tooth fairy. With little effort, Alexandre Rignault, can walk all over him. So there's the whole plot of the movie shot to pieces in the first ten minutes. I'll admit there's plenty of action, but what's the use of it? Rignault could lick a cream puff like Herrand with his legs bound together and both hands tied behind his back. In fact, Herrand gets my vote as the weakest movie villain of all time. So what else is there to say? The movie was made on a top budget, with set changes galore, real locations and lots of extras milling around, but it's a nothing film! I rate it 3/10 purely for its curiosity appeal.