Fantômas (1964) Review
Today I shall reveal to you a hidden gem of French cinema of the 60′s...
Plot: The best men of France - a brave journalist and an extremely energetic commissioner - attack the trail of a mysterious criminal mastermind.
This 60′s French series of films comprising of Fantomas (1964), Fantomas Unleashed (1965) and Fantomas vs. Scotland Yard (1967) were pop culture phenomenons in the European circuit back in the day. Whilst not making a big impression to mainstream audiences in Great Britain or USA, these movies had a vast cult following in places such as France, Italy, Germany and Russia. Being of Russian descent myself and having been raised on Soviet cinema, I also had the opportunity in my childhood to get acquainted with such foreign gems that may not be so well known in Hollywood. French cinema especially was broadcast a lot in the Soviet Union, with a strong spotlight on comedies and lighthearted genres, whether it was Jean-Paul Belmondo parodying James Bond in Le Magnifique (1973) (also titled in some countries as The Man from Acapulco) or Alain Delon imitating Zorro in The Black Tulip (1964) or actually being Zorro in the conveniently titled 1975 film Zorro, or the pairing of Gerard Depardieu and Pierre Richard exemplifying their comical antiques in movies like La Chevre or The Fugitives (1986)......damn, the French really knew how to make people laugh! And no French comedy represents this more as Fantomas. Let me explain...
Its just great. Okay, I’ll give you more than that, but the basic sum-up is that this movie is great. From the acting, to the dialogue to the comical timing with the slapstick farce and the one-liners, this movie is goofy relentless bonkers fun. It is interesting to note that this movie is based on a series of pulp fiction books by writers Marcel Allain and Pierre Souvestre revolving around the shape-shifting evil villain Fantomas. The novels influenced French surrealist and avant-garde artists/writers because of their fascination with moral transgression and black humour (a term coined by the surrealist Andre Breton in the 1930s). Most of these books were grim in tone depicting horrendous murder scenes. However, with this movie, director Andre Hunebelle rebooted the Fantomas universe so radically by dropping all of the detective stuff and instead turned the noir story into a comedy mocking James Bond movies. Think of it as the French Austin Powers! Which one is better? Debatable but to me it would be Fantomas without a doubt due to personal nostalgia.
The entire movie is ridiculous. If you like slapstick comedy, you will enjoy Louis de Funes energetic over-the-top turn as Inspector Juve, as he jumps and screams about Paris acting like he’s the most intelligent person on planet Earth. In reality, its the opposite! Then the titular villain wears a Green Putin-shaped mask with the character even doing the stereotypical Russia laugh that, in a deep voice, goes “he he he”......look, I watched this film in Russian dub so it’s possible that the dialogue expression has been changed up but I cannot help but acknowledge the comparison! Speaking of Russian, this is one of the best foreign language dubbing I’ve ever heard/seen. The choice of the Russian voice actors was so well cast for each part. Especially standing out is, again mentioning Louis de Funes, Russian actor Vladimir Kenigson, who’s radical constantly-exasperated tone fit so seamlessly with the exaggerated mimic of the original actor. But putting Russian dubbers aside, the original film cast themselves are all fantastic. I can keep blabbering on endlessly about Louis de Funes’ comedic chops, but also Jean Mares is worth mentioning duo-rolling as both the titular villain and the main protagonist of the film. As the hero, he’s not so much a James Bond-type but still very much a cool presence. Then there is beautiful French actress Mylene Demongeot who is just gorgeous!
Sure, the film is badly made by today's standards with the cinematography and certain gags coming off a bit amateur, however the movie is so much fun and also its a rare time where the bad guy is smarter than the good ones and always outwits the heroes, which is still refreshing to see compared to most oh-so-morally-PC Hollywood flicks today.
Overall score: 8/10
