Judex (1963 film)

''Judex'' is a 1963 French-language crime film remake of the 1916 French film serial of the same name concerning the adventures of pulp hero Judex. Directed by French filmmaker Georges Franju, the film stars Channing Pollock as Judex/Vallieres, Édith Scob as Jacqueline and Francine Bergé as Diana.

Plot

The film's plot largely follows the arc of Louis Feuillade's serial, but necessarily cuts down the number of events and characters to fit its feature-length running time.

Franju's film begins with Favraux (Michel Vitold), a corrupt banker, and his secretary Vallieres discussing an apparent blackmail note signed only "Judex" (meaning "judge" or "upholder of the law"). Favraux is puzzled because the note demands only that he return money that he has embezzled from others. He hires Cocantin (Jacques Jouanneau), a detective, to provide security at a party he will be giving to announce the engagement of his daughter Jacqueline (Édith Scob), a young widow with a daughter, to an aged but wealthy man. Another man, Pierre Kerjean (René Génin), suddenly comes in and demands aid from Favraux, for whom he had served time in prison, but Favraux has Vallieres escort him from the room.

Later, Cocantin reports that Kerjean has died after being found on the street. Favraux receives another warning from Judex, which he takes more seriously. In the meantime, though, he tells Marie Verdier ( Francine Bergé), Jacqueline's governess, that he is infatuated with her and must marry her after Jacqueline's wedding. That night at the party, where everyone is masked, a mysterious guest wearing a bird's head performs magic tricks. When Favraux begins to announce the engagement, though, he collapses, apparently dead. Later, we see that Judex, who appears in a black hat and cloak, and his assistants have removed Favraux, who was only drugged, from his coffin and imprisoned him.

After Favraux's supposed funeral, Cocantin shows Jacqueline the letter from Judex, which vowed that vengeance would come to Favraux at the exact time when he died. Jacqueline wants to go to the police, but Vallieres tells her about her father's crooked past. Jacqueline renounces any money that she would inherit except for a portion for her daughter, whom she has sent off. The former governess turns out actually to be Diana Monti, head of a criminal gang, who still wants access to Favraux's fortune. Diana adopts other roles and disguises in a series of tricks and attacks to kidnap Jacqueline, who is rescued several times by Judex. Later, Diana also tries to abduct Jacqueline's daughter, but is again foiled, party through actions by the detective Cocantin and his son. Finally, Diana is isolated on a rooftop and, in a battle with a circus gymnast ( Sylva Koscina) aiding the heroes, falls to her death.

At the end Judex and Jacqueline are reunited, walking on a beach as a title appears: "“In homage to Louis Feuillade, in memory of a time that was not happy: 1914.”

Cast

* Channing Pollock as Judex/Vallieres
* Édith Scob as Jacqueline
* Francine Bergé as Diana
* Théo Sarapo as Morales
* Sylva Koscina as Daisy
* René Génin as Pierre Kerjean
* Michel Vitold as the Banker Favraux

Production

Development

The production of ''Judex'' happened by chance. French writer Francis Lacassin

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