Judex

Enigmatic avenger Judex kidnaps a corrupt banker on a quest for justice on behalf of his victims and then takes his innocent daughter under his wing to protect her from her father’s demonic mistress.

This elaborate yet rather simplistic plot, borrowed from Louis Feuillade’s silent adventure mystery series of the same name (1917), offers Georges Franju the opportunity to orchestrate an inspired carnival of disguises and dream-like sequences that sometimes flirts with parody and consistently defies logic: characters die only to mysteriously reappear later, nuns brandish daggers and detectives narrate chapters from “Alice in Wonderland”, while black-clad silhouettes climb the walls.

Just like Judex’s magic tricks, as interpreted by real-life practical magician Channing Pollock, the entire film feels like an enchanting illusion where nothing is as it seems. Starting from an archetypal duel between good and evil, Franju resurrects the undeniable charms of a popular genre, while at the same time making the most surreal film in his entire career. Th.P.

judex - trailer από NyxtesPremieras

Πρωτότυπος τίτλος / Original title: Judex

Σκηνοθεσία / Director: Georges Franju

Σενάριο / Screenwriters: Jacques Champreux, Francis Lacassin

Φωτογραφία / DoP: Marcel Fradetal

Μουσική / Music: Maurice Jarre

Μοντάζ / Editor: Gilbert Natot

Ηθοποιοί / Principal Cast: Channing Pollock, Francine Bergé, Edith Scob, Théo Sarapo, Sylva Koscina, Michel Vitold

Γαλλία, Ιταλία / France, Italy
1963
Ασπρόμαυρο / B&W
94'
Γαλλικά / French

* Screens on 27th September