Belfagor (cinematographic serial) – Wikipedia

Belfagor He is a 1927 cinematographic serial directed by Henri Desfontaines and based on the novel of the same name by Arthur Bernède, author of the script. The serial consists of 4 episodes of 1 hour each, projected on different evenings.

First episode [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

The custodian Gautrais reports to the conservative of the Louvre museum that he had surprised an intruder during the night lap. The conservative would like to warn the police, but another custodian named Sabarat offers to tend to make an ambush to the suspicious thief.

The following morning Gautrais finds the dying colleague in the hall of the pagan divinities, at the foot of the statue of the god Belfagor: the man has time to utter the words “the ghost”, then dies. The news of the mysterious murder at the Louvre, released by the street radio speakers, rests the city: there are those who consider it a thief, those who propose for the ghost hypothesis. The Director of the Police Judiciaire, Ferval, in charge of the investigation, the inspector Ménardier, who however remains rather reticent with the press. A young journalist from Parisian Name Jacques Bellegarde is very intrigued by the mystery of the Louvre ghost: the man is engaged to Simone Desroches, a woman who believes too rich so that she can marry her, but at the same time she is attracted by the young and beautiful Colette Barjac.

Simone is very worried by Jacques’ will to solve the mystery, there is a danger. The journalist asks his maid Marie-Jeanne to ask her husband, the custodian Gautrais, to let him enter the museum because he wants to hide in the barbaric divinity room. Gautrais fears that he is fired, but a man who has a lot of influence on him has heard the conversation and invites him to accept: he is perhaps the father of Colette Barjac.

At night there is not only Bellegarde settled in the Louvre room, but also the inspector Ménardier with two agents. When the ghost manifests itself, chased by the journalist, a shooting takes place. Ménardier would like to arrest Bellegarde but intervenes the man who authorized him, also hidden in the museum, who reveals that he is the famous investigator Chantecoq.

Second episode [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

Chantecoq testifies to Commissioner Ménardier that the journalist Bellegarde is not in league with the ghost. The policeman puts the custodian Gautrais under pressure, who is fired from the museum for having foreign foreigns at night. However, as Chantecoq promised him, both he and his wife are hired at the service of the detective.

Chantecoq, however, begins to reflect on the anonymous letters that Belfagor has sent, and finds a suspect similarity with the calligraphy of Bellegarde. In addition, the ghost is introduced to Simone Desroches’ late at night and stole all the love letters that the journalist sent her. Bellegarde has disappeared, with great pain of Colette: his father does not seem to suspect him, even if the clues multiply.

The next day Ballegarde reappears and tells a strange story: he received a message that announced the serious infirmity of a friend who lives in Nesles and started by train, arriving in the town at the same time when the Louvre ghost would enter the house of Simone. Here he was tram to be tramed in an ambush and thrown down from a bridge, but since he had pretended to lose his senses he managed to save himself.

The two men who attacked Bellegarde penetrate the church of Saint-Germain-Auxerrois at night, in front of the main entrance of the Louvre, and go down to the basement through a trap door.

The ghost of the Louvre awaits them below.

Third episode [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

The ghost of the Louvre and its two acolytes penetrate the museum through an underground secret passage from the church of Saint-Germain, and get rid of Ménardier and its agents with the soporific gas. They move the base of the Belfagor statue and extract an ancient chest. The following morning the Guardians find the police asleep: on the spot they find a lock fragment and understand that the ghost has taken something away.

Ménardier does not cease to suspect Bellegarde, who however left his house to be hosted by Chantecoq. One of the accomplices of the ghost is a hunchback, secretary of Baron Papillon, who attends Desroches’ house: it is this man who deforms to organize an effectiveness of the journalist in the house to leave a lock fragment similar to that found at the museum and a coin of gold of the time of Henry III.

Abandoned by Bellegarde, Simone gets sick and his situation worsens more and more, until death. Warned, Bellegarde escapes from the protection of the Chantecoq house to give her the last farewell, and only the intervention of the detective prevents it from being arrested by the police. For mocking Ménardier and his boss ferval, Chantecoq disguises the journalist and presents him as a conservative of the Italian museum already burgled with thieves: in this way the two have the opportunity to view an ancient memorial, in which it is said that the alchemist of Caterina de ‘Medici hid a jewelry chest under the floor of a Louvre room, then a royal residence, before fleeing during a riot. It is evident that it is through this secret passage that Belfagor and his own penetrated the museum to take possession of the treasure.

Fourth episode [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

Simone Desroches’ sister arrives in Paris, who asks the police chief to delay the pathological investigations on the corpse by one day, since it is suspected was poisoned by Bellegarde. But the body is kidnapped by Belfagor under the eyes of the waitress. An anonymous letter indicates to Ménardier that the journalist Bellegarde is hiding in the house of Chantecoq, under the identity of the director of an Italian museum: the commissioner is arrested.

Determined to demonstrate the innocence of Bellegarde, the Detective Chantecoq introduces himself to Desroches house and discovers that the SIMONE tutor is part of a large conspiracy. Simone herself is not dead, but pretends to be her sister. Simone, however, made Colette kidnapped, the daughter of Chantecoq, from his acolytes, in order to take time and be able to escape abroad with the treasure, but the detective is faster than her and manages to block her and convince her to confess.

The script was written by Arthur Bernède, author of the novel from which the film is taken.

Cinema [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

The episodes of the film serial were screened in France in the cinema in four appointments starting from 10 February 1927. In Finland it was distributed since 15 May 1927. In Portugal since 28 May 1929. In the United Kingdom, in London, the United Kingdom was projected January 3, 1929 and, subsequently reintroduced, from March 21 of the same year. In Italy the serial was projected on two evenings to the review The found cinema , on 20 and 22 July 2021.

The film, distributed with the title of Belphegor In France and Denmark, it is also known with the titles: O fantasma do louvre (Brazil and Portugal), Belphegor (Greece, Yugoslavia and Slovenia), Belfegor (the king of detectives) (Hungary), The Louvre Ghost (Spain), The Mystery of the Louvre (United Kingdom).

Home video [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

The film serial was published in Italy in 2002 in Home Video by Yamato Video in two DVDs, as fifth and sixth DVD, in conjunction with the publication of the television miniseries Belfagor or the ghost of the Louvre from 1965.