Judex & Nuits Rouges

This latest release from Masters of Cinema (#49 and #50) contains two films by Georges Franju: Judex and Nuits Rouges.

JUDEX

Introduction

Georges Franju is a director who I have a lot of time for as he made the brilliant horror film Eyes Without a Face, which is one of my personal favourites. I didn't know that he was a big fan of the Fantômas character and always wanted to make it into a film, but this was not possible at the time.

In the early 1960s, Franju was approached by Jacques Champreux, the grandson of Louis Feuillade, the writer and director of the 1916 silent classic Judex, with a view to remaking his grandfather's film. Champreux and Francis Lacassin adapted the screenplay of the original film and wrote dialogue whilst Channing Pollock was cast as the title character and the cast also included Edith Scob who had worked with Franju in Eyes Without a Face.

In Judex a villainous banker receives a letter from a man calling himself 'Judex' telling him to give his money to those he's hurt and deceived over the years or he'll kill him and his family. The banker, Favraux (Michel Vitold) hires a private detective to find the man behind the threats but he fails and Favraux drops dead during a masked ball as the clock strikes midnight - just as Judex threatened. His daughter Jacqueline (Edith Scob) decides to give the money away and is spared but Diana Monti (Francine Bergé), the former governess, is determined to get the money for herself and kidnaps Jacqueline but Judex is in pursuit.

Video & Audio

The stark chiaroscuro photography by Marcel Fradetal is stunning and, despite some signs of age, the film looks great in this new anamorphic transfer presenting the film in the OAR of 1.66:1.
The only problem was occasional pixelisation of the picture which I hope is just limited to the review disc. I was assured by Eureka that this was a problem on the pressing of the review copies and does not affect subsequent copies - they sent me a more recent disc (for both this and Nuits Rouges) and I can confirm that the problem has been rectified.

The Dolby Digital 2.0 mono soundtrack is very clear and the optional English subtitles are well done and free from spelling and grammatical errors.

Conclusion

Judex is an adventure/mystery film with a central character that could be the inspiration for V but is himself inspired by Fantômas though Judex is a far darker creature than Fantômas. Judex has vast resources and stands up for justice but because of his methods he can be considered more of an anti-hero. Channing Pollock is perfect in the title role - as a conjurer he could perform the tricks himself and has the ideal presence for such a character. This has all the hallmarks of a Franju film, especially Eyes Without a Face as it prominently features masks, dogs and doves - all significant features of his horror masterpiece.

This is a beautifully filmed and an extremely enjoyable movie that will interest not only those who already admire Franju's work but one that almost any fan of adventure or spy films would no doubt enjoy. It's good to see it available in the UK for the first time and presented in such good condition.

NUITS ROUGES

Introduction

Georges Franju and Jacques Champreux planned to make a modern Fantômas film but they discovered that the rights to the material were far too expensive for their budget so Champreux penned a new story to be shot as a feature film and television series. It was shot in Belgrade to reduce costs but the Titoist country did not lend itself to a productive workforce and there were negotiations about almost every minute of overtime. When they returned, they found that some of the film canisters had been filled with sand and that the 32mm material the thought they had for the feature film had simply not been shot so the gaps had to be filled with 16mm footage for the TV show.

Shadowman or, as the French call him, L'homme sans visage (The Man Withought a Face, an obvious nod to Franju's earlier film), is a red masked criminal mastermind with a penchant for disguises and a burning interest in the Knights Templar. In his pursuit of knowledge, artefacts and Templar treasure he is prepared to torture and murder. Aided by the cat-suited Martine (Josephine Chaplin) and reanimated corpses programmed to kill, he and his organisation set about questioning experts and assassinating members of the Templars in order to find the treasure.

Video

A lurid colour scheme which, together with the subject matter, reminded me somewhat of Danger: Diabolik!. The picture is fine considering the mix of 32mm and 16mm stock (which explains why this is non-anamorphic) but, like Judex, suffers from occasional pixelisation - I am relieved that this was limited to my first review copy.

Audio

A clear Dolby Digital 2.0 mono soundtrack but if you find dubbing annoying you'll hate this as the multinational cast seem to be speaking in their native tongues but had the dialogue dubbed into French. Occasionally this is alright when the actor is French and the synchronisation is close but sometimes the lips and dialogue are way out and I occasionally found myself lip-reading!

Extra Features

Both discs contain an interview with Jacques Champreux in which he talks at length about the genesis and development of the projects and how he feels about the films.

This package comes with a 40-page booklet containing interviews photographs/stills and other articles and is an informative and interesting read and a good addition the DVD.

Conclusion

Nuits Rouges could have been a really camp espionage caper but Franju's direction and the dark subject matter turn it into a more satisfactory thriller. Whether you call it Shadowman, The Man Without a Face or Nuits Rouges it's still an enjoyable B-feature to Judex which is by far the better of the two films and arguably the selling point of this set. The two films complement each other well and make a good evening's viewing.

If you like James Bond films and TV shows like The Man From U.N.C.L.E. this is something you are likely to enjoy as it combines action, gadgets and a far-fetched story to good effect.