Enchanted by his 1942 allegorical tale Fantastic Night,I was intrigued to spot a fellow IMDber recently talk about watching two murder- mystery "capers" from director Marcel L'Herbier. Kindly pointed towards the films by a fellow IMDber,I got set to meet the Woman In Black.
The plot:
As Mathilde and Robert Darzac get married, police officer Joseph "Rouletabille" Josephin opens the coffin of an infamous killer,and finds that the body has disappeared.Going to spend their honeymoon in a mansion,the couple learn of Darzac's disappearance,and also of a mysterious figure stepping out of the shadows called the Woman in Black.
View on the film:
Taking the unusual route of watching the second movie in the series before the first (!) the screenplay by writer/director Marcel L'Herbier brings things up to date with a brief flashback opening,which gives the rest of the movie the chance to go its own way. Unmasking one of Gaston Leroux's non-Phantom of the Opera novels, L'Herbier gives his adaptation some shades of Film Noir,by gliding across a mansion of double dealings,faked deaths and murderers lurking in the shadows. Initially giving the movie a glossy caper shine, L'Herbier disappointingly peels the shine off for a dry "chamber piece",draining the title of its desired sass,as Rouletabille has to solve everything in one location.
Retaining his Silent movie style, L'Herbier & cinematographers Louis Page and Georges Périnal stub the movie with a stylish sped-up film technique,sending the servants of the mansion running along the wall,and a would-be killer and victim doing Olympic moves in silhouette. While the title character is not shown nearly enough after a tantalising moody opening, L'Herbier splashes the mansion in a glamorous Art-Deco design,as Rouletabille gets the first scent from the Woman in Black.
The plot:
As Mathilde and Robert Darzac get married, police officer Joseph "Rouletabille" Josephin opens the coffin of an infamous killer,and finds that the body has disappeared.Going to spend their honeymoon in a mansion,the couple learn of Darzac's disappearance,and also of a mysterious figure stepping out of the shadows called the Woman in Black.
View on the film:
Taking the unusual route of watching the second movie in the series before the first (!) the screenplay by writer/director Marcel L'Herbier brings things up to date with a brief flashback opening,which gives the rest of the movie the chance to go its own way. Unmasking one of Gaston Leroux's non-Phantom of the Opera novels, L'Herbier gives his adaptation some shades of Film Noir,by gliding across a mansion of double dealings,faked deaths and murderers lurking in the shadows. Initially giving the movie a glossy caper shine, L'Herbier disappointingly peels the shine off for a dry "chamber piece",draining the title of its desired sass,as Rouletabille has to solve everything in one location.
Retaining his Silent movie style, L'Herbier & cinematographers Louis Page and Georges Périnal stub the movie with a stylish sped-up film technique,sending the servants of the mansion running along the wall,and a would-be killer and victim doing Olympic moves in silhouette. While the title character is not shown nearly enough after a tantalising moody opening, L'Herbier splashes the mansion in a glamorous Art-Deco design,as Rouletabille gets the first scent from the Woman in Black.