Enter Arsene Lupin (1944)

Enter Arsene Lupin (1944). 1h 12m | Approved

“At a time French TV is butchering Maurice Leblanc u0026#39;s u0026quot;lu0026#39;île aux trente cercueils u0026quot;, itu0026#39;s refreshing to watch this American adaptation ;itu0026#39;s not based on an original novel,mind you, but the screenwriters succeeded at capturing the spirit of Lupinu0026#39;s adventures ;Charles Korvin is well cast, for Leblancu0026#39;s hero , the gentleman cambrioleur (=thief) was part aristocrat (on his motheru0026#39;s side) part man of the people (on his fatheru0026#39;s ) ; they mainly tried to imitate Lupinu0026#39;s first adventures ,the latter ones becoming more and more myterious and even verging on supernatural.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eGanimard,(J Carroll Naish)-the only other character who appears in some novels featured in this movie-is the official superintendent and provides it with its comic relief :the scene at the railway station when lupin makes him to be …himself is riotously funny .u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eLIke in many adventures, Lupin is assisted by an accomplice,Armand .Both use French galore , sing the old folk song u0026quot;auprès de ma blondeu0026quot; (heard again for the finale) , ride on the orient express where they meet a lovely damsel (Ella Raines )soon to be in distress because she owns an invaluable esmerald and her nasty cousins want to do away with her ; hence ,both sides of Lupin are displayed : the thief who effortlessly steals Rembrandt u0026#39;s paintings or jewels , but who gives to the orphanage and saves the damsel in distress.(By and large,though Lupin is an impenitent womanizer ,his love affairs are not happy in the books)Of course ,he uses a pseud (Monsieur Du0026#39;Andrésy) one of his usual tricks.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eAnd what a delight to hear the way they pronounce the name of the hero:Arsene Loopin!”