All language subtitles for Fantomas The False Magistrate e05 1914 d Louis Feuillade.eng

Gaumont and the Centre National
du Cinéma et de I'image animée,

in collaboration with
the Cinématheque francaise, present

Directed by

THE FALSE MAGISTRATE

(original release May 1914)

Based on the Novel
Le Magistrat cambrioleur

by Mr. Pierre Souvestre
and Mr. Marcel Allain

Set Design
Mr. Robert-Jules Garnier

Photography and Editing
Mr. Georges Guérin

CAST

Fantémas / The Fake Judge Pradier
Mr. René Navarre

Inspector Juve / The Austrian Delegate
Mr. Edmond Bréon

The Marquis de Tergall
Mr. Mesnery

Baby Face
Mr. Laurent Morlas

and

The Marquise de Tergall
Miss Germaine Pelisse

The Marquis and Marquise de Tergall
have suffered a reversal of fortune.

The marquis has persuaded his wife
to sell her jewels

in order to meet pressing needs.

Mr. Chambeérieux
Jeweler, Le Mans

I hereby accept,

after conferring
with my wife, the Marquise,

your offer of 250,000 francs

for the jewels we wish to sell.

I'll be in Saint-Calais next Wednesday

at the Hotel Européen, room 30,

where I usually stay,

I shall expect you
at 9:00 in the morning.

I'll hand the jewelry box over to you

in exchange for 250,000 francs in cash.

Sincerely,
Marquis de Tergall

Rosa has already
overhead everything

when the bell summons her
back to the salon.

Mr. Chambérieux
Sapphire Jewelers

The following Wednesday,
early in the morning,

a young priest leaves room 29

of the Hotel Européen
in Saint-Calais.

Meanwhile, in room 30,

the marquis completes
his painful transaction

with the jeweler Chambérieux.

"Didn't we agree
on payment in cash?"

Returning from the bank
where he cashed the check,

the marquis encounters
a second priest coming out of room 29.

Chambérieux,
awaiting the marquis's return,

thought it best to put
the jewelry box in a dresser drawer.

Meanwhile,
leaving Saint-Calais...

At the Hotel Européen,

Investigating Judge Morel
begins taking statements.

Chambérieux is still accusing
the marquis

when the judge has an idea.

A sinner seeking absolution

requests you come to the small chapel
on the road to Le Mans

on Wednesday at 9:00.

The priest having been cleared,
the marquis returns to his chateau

~ with the 250,000 francs
from the sale in his pocket.

At Chateau Tergall.

The marquis, badly wounded,

finally reaches the chateau.

He tells his wife of the crime

he just fell prey to:

the theft of 250,000 francs

following that of the marquise's jewels

at the Hotel Européen.

Shortly thereafter, Rosa, the maid,

is visited in her room by Baby Face,

who gives her the banknotes

stolen from the marquis

and asks her to conceal them,

sealing the deal with a kiss.

Summary of missing scenes

Part One
THE PRISONER OF LOUVAIN

DARING JEWEL THEFT
IN SAINT-CALAIS, SARTHE

Another crime by Fantomas?

Yesterday, the Marquise de Tergall's jewels
mysteriously disappeared

as they were being sold.

Through a hole in the wall, the thief
snatched the jewelry box from a drawer.

Police are investigating,

but the devilish crime
calls Fantomas to our mind.

To be continued...
Jérome Fandor

Inspector Juve
is also suspicious of Fantomas

when he receives a police report

which he immediately hands
to his young friend,

the journalist Jérome Fandor.

FILE #147
THE FANTOMAS AFFAIR

Fantomas, condemned to death
by a Belgian court

for a murder committed in Belgium
(see File #163).

As is customary in their country,

the death sentence
was commuted to life imprisonment.

Fantémas is incarcerated
in Louvain's prison under number D33.

Juve makes a decision.

He gives Fandor a letter
to hand over to the police chief

in case there's trouble.

Dear Chief of Police,

My life's goal has been
to arrest Fantomas

and hand him over
to the executioner myself.

Currently, the bandit eludes us,

and it's probable
he'll eventually find a way to escape.

Here's my plan.

I go to Belgium.

I help Fantomas escape
and take his place.

He's tailed to France
where your men arrest him.

Then my friend Fandor
points out in The Capital

that Fantomas cannot be
both under arrest in France

and imprisoned in Louvain.

We demand the extradition
of the man in Belgium,

and I return home in police custody.

Confrontation.
I'm recognized and set free.

Fantomas finally meets Deibler,
the executioner.

Sincerely, Juve.

Shortly thereafter, Fantomas,
in his cell in Louvain's prison,

receives signals
from an invisible accomplice

who is none other than... Juve.

The following day,

a delegate from Austria's
penitentiary bureau participates,

as a special guest,

in the monthly prison inspection.

"Excuse me, gentlemen.

I believe I left
my glasses in the cell."

At the inspector's request,
the guard goes to turn on the lights.

Inspectors Michel and Léon,

sent from Paris on Juve's orders,

await the escaped prisoner

to follow him back to France.

At the station.

Part Two

CHARLES PRADIER,
INVESTIGATING JUDGE

Tired of being followed,
the bandit regains his freedom.

At the next stop,
an inattentive traveler...

Not having heard
the departure whistle,

the man had just enough time
to leap into the baggage car.

CHARLES PRADIER
INVESTIGATING JUDGE

Protean Fantomas!

He's already procured the needed articles
for his deadly incarnations...

At Saint-Calais station.

A chauffeur from the Hétel Européen
awaits the newly-appointed judge.

The next morning
at the Hotel Européen.

"Good morning, Your Honor.

Your predecessor, Judge Morel,
is expecting you."

At the courthouse,

District Attorney Bernardy
welcomes the fake Judge Pradier.

"A cassock,

the chief piece of evidence
in the Tergall affair."

Part Three
THE BURGLAR JUDGE

The Marquise de Tergall's jewels,

that's what interests Fantomas...

His instinct leads him
to a possible lair of the thieves.

Two men emerge.

The first is Baby Face

and the other Ribonard,
the fake priest.

This Thursday, 5 o'clock,
the church in Bouloire

Meet Ribonard for jewels.

Rosa (the Tergalls' maid)
carries on her person

the 250,000 francs stolen
from the marquis.

The following day,

the cream of Saint-Calais society
is invited

to a hunting party
hosted by the Marquis de Tergall.

"I'm sorry,
I have a terrible migraine.

I prefer to stay at the chateau."

Among the guests,

the fake Judge Pradier
doesn't join the hunt either...

The fake judge has found
a compromising letter

written by the marquise.

You know I haven't stopped loving you,
despite my marriage.

But I can't meet you today.

Be patient, I beg you.
I think I'll soon be free...

I love you, Antoinette.

A Machiavellian idea
leads Fantomas to the gas meter.

"Excuse me, dear sir.
I had some household duties..."

Shortly thereafter,
the guests return from the hunt.

That very evening,
the fake judge begins his investigation.

Be patient, I beg you.
I think I'll soon be free...

I need 500,000 francs.
Otherwise, I'll have you arrested.

The next day,
at the church in Bouloire.

"The jewelry box is up there, boss,
inside the bell."

Swindled!

A few days later,

the Marquis de Tergall's funeral
takes place

at the church in Bouloire.

Pearls, diamonds, rubies and blood
rain down on the guests!

Fantémas, as a judge,

ensures all the jewels
that fell from the bell tower

are handed over to him.

Part Four
THE EXTRADITION FROM LOUVAIN

Learning of the tragic events,

~ Jéréme Fandor
has left his office at The Capital

for a room at the Hotel Européen
in Saint-Calais.

Fandor now knows

that the man
is the Saint-Calais judge

and that he is staying in room 12.

In the mysterious Ribonard affair,

the bandit, near death,

was removed
from the church bell in Bouloire,

and, before dying, he said only,

"Fantomas! Fantomas!"

After refusing numerous requests,

the Belgian government has finally agreed

to extradite Fantomas,

who is currently being held
in Louvain's prison.

The extradited prisoner
will be escorted by the police

to the Saint-Calais courthouse.

A lucky coincidence serves
the fake Judge Pradier's plans:

Baby Face
and his accomplice, the Student,

have been arrested for a minor offense.

The extradited prisoner
will be escorted by the police

to the Saint-Calais courthouse.

In exchange for their freedom,

Fantomas has just ordered the ruffians

to murder Juve
as soon as he arrives in Saint-Calais.

In room 12, Fandor discovers

that all the judge's hats

are stuffed with newspaper

to improve the fit,

except for a cap whose label shows

it was made in Louvain.

Louvain and its prison

from which Juve
helped Fantomas escape!

The journalist's hunches
are confirmed,

and now official reinforcements
are called for.

Summary of a damaged scene

TELEGRAMS

National Police, Paris.

Send Inspectors Michel and Léon
to Saint-Calais immediately.

Very urgent. Fandor.

Meanwhile, the fake Judge Pradier
summons the unfortunate marquise

and her maid.

Dear Marquise de Tergall,

I am unable to furnish
the entire sum you requested today,

but tomorrow the 500,000 francs
will be at your disposition,

and I'll personally deliver them
to you in the morning.

My respectful salutations,
Delalauge, Notary Public

Now it is Rosa's turn.

"Search her!"

In front of the prison in Saint-Calais.

Fandor has chanced upon the release
of Baby Face and the Student,

known members of the shady gang
led by Fantémas.

Fandor's plot.

The Capital newspaper, Paris.

I've learned that Fantomas,
the infamous bandit,

is being extradited from Louvain

and arrives tonight at Connerré Station

to be brought
to the prison in Saint-Calais.

Midnight, Connerré Station.

It was Fandor
who played the prisoner

and Inspectors Michel and Léon,
the guards!

Fantomas didn't even flinch

when he ordered
his two accomplices to be locked up.

After leaving the judge's office,

Inspectors Michel and Léon

have District Attorney Bernardy
sign an unorthodox command.

"What are these enigmas,
you ask?"

The following day,
at the appointed time.

Fantémas has recognized
the prisoner who was extradited from Louvain,

and it is Juve!

Saint-Calais Courthouse

By order of the district attorney,

all the doors in the Saint-Calais courthouse,
both inside and out,

are to be locked and guarded by police,

and no one,
including judges and other officials,

with the exception of guards and police,

may exit the building until further order.

Bernardy, District Attorney

Meanwhile, -
in District Attorney Bernardy's office...

"Show in this Fantomas!"

"And that's not all, District Attorney.

In the office next door,

Judge Pradier... is Fantomas!"

Fantémas summons
the chief warden of the prison.

"The slightest breach of this order,
the slightest indiscretion,

will cost you your job.

Understood?"

Juve is close
to accomplishing his life's goal:

capturing Fantémas...

The following day, Juve summons Fantémas
to Bernardy's office.

But the chief warden
of the prison arrives alone

and hands the two men
the confidential order

written by Pradier the previous day.

Saint-Calais Courthouse

I, Charles Pradier, Investigating Judge,
order the prison's chief warden

to personally release at midnight,
and in total secrecy,

the prisoner entrusted to him
under the name of Fantomas.

The prisoner is, in reality,
none other than Inspector Juve,

and his arrest was simply a ruse
necessary to my investigation.

Saint-Calais, March 1, 1914,
Charles Pradier.

In a stroke of genius,

Fantomas, borrowing
his victim's signature one last time,

ordered his own release.

Society should continue to tremble!

THE END

This film was restored in 2013 by Gaumont

with the help of the Centre National
du Cinéma et de I'image animée

as part of a program for the restoration
and digitization of our film heritage,

and in collaboration
with the Cinémathéque francaise.

Frames were scanned in 4K
from the original nitrate negative,

the internegative
and two prints for any missing shots.

The intertitles were reconstructed
based on texts intended for theater owners

that were published
in 1913 and 1914 by Gaumont.