Il mistero dei tre continenti

Micheline Presle ,one of the luminaries of the French cinema, turned 100 last August ;after the disappearance of Daniel Darrieux ,she 's the last French legend of the golden age ; she saves something from the wreckage in this cock and bull story :her Mata Hari is larger than life :she's cruel ,ruthless, distinguished ,chic and deadly handsome ; her playing is very tongue in chick,the best thing to do when you deal with such a part.

Did Dieterle direct that? Is it the same man who made the best version of Hugo's "hunchback of Notre Dame " or "portrait of Jennie",to name but two? You have to live!

The first part is burdened by tons of voice over , to make sure the audience did understand this far fetched yarn who tries to imitate "north by norwest "(the ending is obvious) and whose McGuffin is a formula the yellow peril covets .Implausibilities abound:after an explosion which destroys all the area , the scientist came out with a heart attack and his daughter and his assistant unharmed!

The second part is disjointed ,but it's the scenes in the jungle which take the biscuit ,particularly that one when a boa constrictor coils up around Carlos Thompson's body whilst Martha Hyers is sinking in the quicksands : enough is enough and it's guaranteed to net nothing but horse laughs .The magnificent temples of Angkor might have provided the movie with a splendid background and the monks could have brought back wisdom , peace and love in a world gone wrong ,but it's too little too late. The French audience will appreciate Lino Ventura short but effective appearance as a hard nut to crack.