REVIEWED
“I was so happy with you, why did this have to spoil everything?” - Governess Verdier (Francine Bergé)
Favraux is an elderly wealthy banking magnet, who built-up his empire on corruption. He's the type of machiavellian banker whose only happy after running over peasants in his automobile. A mysterious man known only as Judex tries to teach him a lesson. By blackmailing him, unless he donates half of his fortune to those he had swindled. The plot doesn't go to Judex's original Robin Hood plan, so he resorts to an unusual second plan.
'Judex' is Georges Franju's highly camp, self-indulgent ode to Louis Feuillade. One of the true pioneers of French & European silent cinema and surrealism, who directed the original 'Judex' & 'Fantomas' serials. Franju also remade Feuillade's 'Nuits Rouges' a decade later. Apparently this 60's gem was a critical & financial failure on release. Which is a shame because its lots of fun, all be it a little on the silly side. Thankfully the B&W cinematographies aged much better than its plot, and made it worth the toil of hunting out.
[Personal Reasons For Remembering]
The haphazard villainess Governess Verdier (Francine Bergé) going Norman Bates while dressed has a smoking nun, the masked cat burglars climbing walls like spiderman, the 'oh la la' gorgeous circus acrobat Daisy (Sylva Koscina) and the wildly decadent aviary masked ball.
Originally taken from Letterboxd
No comments:
Post a Comment