René Navarre Movies
- 1931
Starring Henri Navarre (who also co-directed with Henri Debain), this French chapterplay released in 1931 was the country's first -- and last -- sound serial. Navarre, who had skyrocketed to fame in the groundbreaking serial Fantômas (1914), played Professor Bergman, a clever armchair detective. The serial also featured one of France's great stars, Jean Gabin, in only his second film role, France Dhelia, Alexandre Mihalesco (as Nostradamus), and, of all people, rubber-limbed American vaudeville comic Gil Lamb in what was perhaps his screen debut. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jean Gabin
- 1913
Between 1913 and 1914, French director Louis Feuillade turned out five fast-paced melodramas based upon the character of criminal genius Fantomas. The second of these was Juve vs. Fantomas. The villain's nemesis is police inspector Juve (or Jove), who is forever one step behind the masked-and-caped crime lord. In addition to his superior intellect, Fantomas is a master of disguise. Despite his heinous crimes, the audience tends to root for Fantomas as he effortlessly outwits the plodding Jove at every turn. Each of the five Fantomas films were multipart, serialized efforts, with each individual adventure picking up where the last one left off. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- René Navarre, Edmond Breon, (more)
- 1913
Fantomas was the umbrella title for five different multi-part serials, all produced and directed by the prolific Louis Feuillade. Reversing the usual cliché, the "hero" of these serials was the villain, a slick, deadly master criminal known as "Fantomas" because of his predilection for wearing elaborate disguises. Motivated by a curious code of honor, Fantomas gets just as much pleasure out of baffling the police as he does committing his crimes. Unlike later serials, many of the Fantomas episodes were self-contained stories, some running as much as an hour; one of the episodes briefly eschewed melodrama in favor of light, drawing-room comedy! Released worldwide by Gaumont, the Fantomas series was a huge success, paving the way for such future Louis Feuillade-directed triumphs as Les Vampires and Judex. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- René Navarre, Edmond Breon, (more)
