Judex
Director: Georges Franju
Year Released: 1963
Rating: 3.0
Crooked banker (is there any other kind?) Favraux (Michel Vitold) gets a letter from a mysterious caped avenger named Judex (Channing Pollock, who's skilled at making birdies appear) that he has a set period of time to right his wrongs ... Favraux refuses and is "killed" (really, just drugged and kidnapped) - elsewhere, vampy Diana (Francine Bergé) and her boyfriend kidnap Favraux's daughter Jacqueline (Édith Scob) for extortion purposes. Franju (significantly) pares down the wacky serials by Louis Feuillade and gives it a too-steady pace - there's a lot going on plot-wise, but the presentation is measured (it could have used a little more reckless zippiness). It's a bit of fun if you like crime capers with happy endings ... and Bergé's pre-Catwoman vixen is a classic "bad bitch."
