1916, Serial Chapter

Judex (1916, Louis Feuillade), Episode 11: The Water Goddess

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So while Yvonne Dario is still consoling Yvette Andréyor about deceiving her–again, it’s not clear how much of the blame Dario takes on herself, which should be a lot since she made René Cresté vow to kill Andréyor’s father–Cresté goes off to save Andréyor’s father. On the way, he meets up with his brother, Édouard Mathé, who managed to get out of the house without raising Andréyor’s suspicions. Mathé tries to give Cresté a pistol but Cresté doesn’t need one.

What he does need is to pay some attention. At the meeting spot, Musidora sneaks up on Cresté. She’s on a boat. He doesn’t see a boat. Nearby, Marcel Lévesque and his girlfriend, Lily Deligny, see the boat. Which is good, because Deligny has to go save Cresté after he gets taken prisoner because he’s not good at planning. At all.

Deligny is the titular Water Goddess and, along with René Poyen, one of Judex’s real heroes.

It’s a fairly action-packed chapter. Not particularly suspenseful, as director Feuillade draws more attention to the melodramatic possibilities–but still action-packed. It’s good Judex has established Cresté as unable to think about anything else when he’s got Andréyor on his mind, because he forgets about Deligny. He also forgets about the guy he gets killed. He’s preoccupied. He’s convinced Louis Leubas (as Andréyor’s father) there might be a happy ending for all.

Except the dead people.

Lévesque’s got some adorable physical comedy and Goddess is paced well. It just further reveals, presumably unintentionally, Cresté to be more a feckless blue blood than determined vigilante.

One episode to go. Then the epilogue.

CREDITS

Directed by Louis Feuillade; written by Arthur Bernède and Feuillade; directors of photography, André Glatti and Léon Klausse; production designer, Robert-Jules Garnier; released by Gaumont.

Starring René Cresté (Judex), Yvette Andréyor (Jacqueline Aubry), Musidora (Diana Monti), Louis Leubas (Favraux), Marcel Lévesque (Cocantin), Jean Devalde (Robert Moralés), Édouard Mathé (Roger de Tremeuse), Olinda Mano (Jean), René Poyen (The Licorice Kid), Gaston Michel (Pierre Kerjean), Lily Deligny (Miss Daisy Torp), Juliette Clarens (Gisèle), Georges Flateau (Vicomte de la Rochefontaine), and Yvonne Dario (Comtesse de Tremeuse).

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1916, Serial Chapter

Judex (1916, Louis Feuillade), Episode 10: Jacqueline’s Heart

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Jacqueline’s Heart is a very short episode. Nine minutes or so. And nothing much happens except René Cresté plays fast and loose with his multiple identities and Yvette Andréyor finds his make-up kit. Overhearing Andréyor wish his sweet old man persona would show up, Cresté obliges.

A note from Andréyor’s father–no longer imprisoned (at least not by Cresté)–arrives and beckons her to a mysterious meeting on the docks at night. Cresté, as old man, says he’ll go. But then he changes into his Judex gear in his room (next to Andréyor’s) before heading out.

And she sees him. Leading to her investigating his room. And finding his makeup kit. Then along comes Yvonne Dario to console the confused Andréyor.

The episode ends with Dario telling Andréyor everything. Sadly it cuts that scene, so it’s not clear yet if Dario is going to tell Andréyor she–Dario–is the one who wanted to kill her–Andréyor’s–father.

It’s an interesting turn of events; I assumed Andréyor wouldn’t find out the truth until much later. But Judex is getting close to the finish. Only three episodes to go. Or two and an epilogue.

CREDITS

Directed by Louis Feuillade; written by Arthur Bernède and Feuillade; directors of photography, André Glatti and Léon Klausse; production designer, Robert-Jules Garnier; released by Gaumont.

Starring René Cresté (Judex), Yvette Andréyor (Jacqueline Aubry), Musidora (Diana Monti), Louis Leubas (Favraux), Marcel Lévesque (Cocantin), Jean Devalde (Robert Moralés), Édouard Mathé (Roger de Tremeuse), Olinda Mano (Jean), René Poyen (The Licorice Kid), Gaston Michel (Pierre Kerjean), Lily Deligny (Miss Daisy Torp), Juliette Clarens (Gisèle), Georges Flateau (Vicomte de la Rochefontaine), and Yvonne Dario (Comtesse de Tremeuse).

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1916, Serial Chapter

Judex (1916, Louis Feuillade), Episode 9: When the Child Appeared

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This chapter begins with the principals removed from their problems and living it up on the Mediterranean. Édouard Mathé and mother Yvonne Dario have taken Yvette Andréyor, Olinda Mano, and (of course) René Poyen away from the troubles in Paris to a beautiful seaside estate. Somewhere they can all just relax, safe from Musidora’s evil machinations.

Except, of course, lovestruck René Cresté can’t help but rent the estate next door so he can woo Andréyor (in his own identity). He has to bring his prisoner along with, so he also needs the prisoner’s caretaker. Apparently it never occurs to Cresté someone might see supposed dead Louis Leubas and recognize him. Andréyor’s only his daughter, Mano’s only his grandson.

And Mano is the titular Child who appears. Mano’s encounter with Leubas, which returns Leubas to an active role in Judex for the first time since the prologue, isn’t even the most dramatic thing. No, Musidora is also in town. She’s followed private investigator Marcel Lévesque from Paris, bringing once again evil Jean Devalde along. Devalde has gray hair as a disguise, Musidora dresses as a man.

Still. Apparently no one was worried about Lévesque being an obvious target. And when Mano tells everyone about Leubas living next door, it’s clear Cresté doesn’t have a plan for revealing the truth to Andréyor. He’s just a dope in love.

The chapter ends with Lévesque getting a deus ex love interest in (an uncredited) Lily Deligny. She’s swimming the Mediterranean and just happens to be an ex-girlfriend. Lucky Lévesque.

The serial can get away with some of the contrivances just because of the pace–and Musidora’s scheming–but there’s a decided lack of drama this episode, even though it keeps promising it.

CREDITS

Directed by Louis Feuillade; written by Arthur Bernède and Feuillade; directors of photography, André Glatti and Léon Klausse; production designer, Robert-Jules Garnier; released by Gaumont.

Starring René Cresté (Judex), Yvette Andréyor (Jacqueline Aubry), Musidora (Diana Monti), Louis Leubas (Favraux), Marcel Lévesque (Cocantin), Jean Devalde (Robert Moralés), Édouard Mathé (Roger de Tremeuse), Olinda Mano (Jean), René Poyen (The Licorice Kid), Gaston Michel (Pierre Kerjean), Lily Deligny (Miss Daisy Torp), Juliette Clarens (Gisèle), Georges Flateau (Vicomte de la Rochefontaine), and Yvonne Dario (Comtesse de Tremeuse).

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1916, Serial Chapter

Judex (1916, Louis Feuillade), Episode 8: The Underground Passages of the Chateau-Rouge

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The Underground Passages of the Chateau-Rouge shows the audience the most of Judex’s base so far. There’s a finished bedroom and some castle interior hallways. Not just the ruins and then laboratory. Some of it is revealed when brothers René Cresté and Édouard Mathé show their mom, Yvonne Dario, around the base.

She wants to make sure they’re torturing Louis Leubas enough.

But there’s some more of the base revealed when Jean Devalde–who managed to stay a good guy for the entire previous episode, which he didn’t appear in–falls back under Musidora’s charms and brings henchmen to the base to kidnap Leubas.

It doesn’t go according to plan.

The chapter eventually teams Cresté and Marcel Lévesque–all is, of course, forgiven when it comes to Lévesque’s work for Musidora–which leads to the serial’s first gunfight.

A lot happens in the chapter, but only with supporting cast–Leubas, Devalde, and Georges Flateau. I’m assuming the action will return to the principals once Cresté discovers Devalde’s return to the dark side.

CREDITS

Directed by Louis Feuillade; written by Arthur Bernède and Feuillade; directors of photography, André Glatti and Léon Klausse; production designer, Robert-Jules Garnier; released by Gaumont.

Starring René Cresté (Judex), Yvette Andréyor (Jacqueline Aubry), Musidora (Diana Monti), Louis Leubas (Favraux), Marcel Lévesque (Cocantin), Jean Devalde (Robert Moralés), Édouard Mathé (Roger de Tremeuse), Olinda Mano (Jean), René Poyen (The Licorice Kid), Gaston Michel (Pierre Kerjean), Lily Deligny (Miss Daisy Torp), Juliette Clarens (Gisèle), Georges Flateau (Vicomte de la Rochefontaine), and Yvonne Dario (Comtesse de Tremeuse).

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