Fantomas

Fantomas (1947): Fantomas is dead, which is a relief to everyone. That includes detective Alexandre Rignault, who tracked him down in cooperation with reporter André Le Gall. It especially is a relief, to his daughter, Simone Signoret, who gets married to Le Gall. Except that wasn't the mayor who married them. The mayor was murdered by Fantomas (played by Marcel Herrand), who then married the happy pair, which means they are married. Plus he's got a death ray, which he will use to destroy Paris unless they give him One Billion.... Francs? Louises D'or? Pounds Sterling? Hong Kong Dollars?

It never really gets defined as the various plot threads get twisted together. Herrand only wears the Fantomas costume -- opera hat, cape, mask -- briefly for a few seconds, a couple of times, while he expresses disappointment with his daughter's soon-to-be-dead fiance -- talk about your fathers disapproving of their daughters' boyfriends! And most of his inions get shot by other minions. Talk about your labor unrest!

It was, of course, a famous silent serial directed by Louis Feuillade from a novel by Marcel Allain. With World War II over, Evil Geniuses were definitely trending downward in the marketplace of literary ideas, except for the occasional serio-comic offering of Arsene Lupin. Most of the thrills here are on the level of serials in the United States, but the production values are decent and first-time director Jean Sacha offers the thrills at a steady pace.

The FANTOMAS movies get weaker as they go. This one is out-classed by Feuillade and Fejos but it still shows a fair level of ambition and creams Jean Marais in 'Scope. There are a couple more also-rans.

Alexandre Rignault gets one of his biggest outings and Herrand was coming off his best role in ENFANTS DU PARADIS. However attention goes to Signoret at her most appealing, as the imperiled heroine who takes an active part in the action, blazing away with the pistol and taking the tyre iron to the laboratory fittings.

The old characters are re-assembled for new adventures on an adequate budget. There are multiple disguises, shoot-outs with Tommy guns (on single shot), a death ray in a truck, one of the earliest depictions of a helicopter, a mysterious HQ with a descending roof room - all the good stuff. The result is post war drab and not particularly exciting but it is an interesting part of the spectrum, the old Penny Dreadful now edging on for Diabolik & James Bond.

I wrote that "Fantomas" (1964) is a remake of this. But even this "Fantômas" (1947) is itself a remake of "Fantomas: The Man in Black" (1913) Juve contre Fantômas (original title), directed by Louis Feuillade. Feuillade made a few more Fantomas after that. Finally, you'll see Simone Signoret beautiful. Because here she's only 26 years old, in the other movies, when she's older, she's already fat, with a grumpy face and her voice thickened badly from tobacco.