This is a far cry from the original concept of Allain and Souvestre and has been reduced to nothing more than one of those infernal James Bond spin-offs that cluttered up sixties cinema as well as being yet another of the worthless remakes that Jean Marais made with director(I use the term loosely) André Hunebelle.
It is utterly devoid of suspense and momentum whilst the so-called 'comedic' element supplied by the police inspector of hammy Louis de Funés is utterly infantile. Marais was apparently advised to do the film by his mentor Jean Cocteau and had not Cocteau passed away before the film's release he would no doubt have been obliged to offer Marais his deepest apologies. Lovely Mylene Demongeot deserves better although this is so typical of the mediocre material she was offered from the 1960's onwards.
This ineffably naff and feeble opus is generally considered to be the best of Hunebelle's Fantomas trilogy. If that is the case I dread to think what the others are like and have not the least desire to find out.
In preference to Hunebelle's abomination this viewer would highly recommend Louis Feuillade's stylish pentalogy from 1913-14 which has been beautifully restored by the Cinématheque Francaise.
30/03/2023. Farewell Mlle Demongeot. May flights of angels sing thee to thy rest.
It is utterly devoid of suspense and momentum whilst the so-called 'comedic' element supplied by the police inspector of hammy Louis de Funés is utterly infantile. Marais was apparently advised to do the film by his mentor Jean Cocteau and had not Cocteau passed away before the film's release he would no doubt have been obliged to offer Marais his deepest apologies. Lovely Mylene Demongeot deserves better although this is so typical of the mediocre material she was offered from the 1960's onwards.
This ineffably naff and feeble opus is generally considered to be the best of Hunebelle's Fantomas trilogy. If that is the case I dread to think what the others are like and have not the least desire to find out.
In preference to Hunebelle's abomination this viewer would highly recommend Louis Feuillade's stylish pentalogy from 1913-14 which has been beautifully restored by the Cinématheque Francaise.
30/03/2023. Farewell Mlle Demongeot. May flights of angels sing thee to thy rest.