Film Review

Although he was far from enthusiastic about having to adapt Rémy's thriller novel, director Georges Lautner does a reasonable job and delivers the first of his celebrated thriller parodies. As the film was originally scripted as a straight thriller, the humour is stretched pretty thinly, so you should not expect too many laughs. Lautner would have far more success with his subsequent comedy-thrillers, including the direct sequel to this film L'Oeil du monocle (1962) and the classic Les Tontons flingueurs (1963). Lautner's direction on Le Monocle noir lacks the inspired touch, although there are a few surprising flourishes towards the end. The film's excellent cast includes Pierre Blanchar in his final screen appearance (as the eccentric Marquis de Villemaur), although the star of the film is Paul Meurisse, in the first of three outings as the supremely elegant secret agent Dromard. Bernard Blier makes a few humorous incursions, and it is worth noting that his son Bertrand began his film career here, as Lautner's assistant director.

Film Synopsis

The Marquis de Villemaur, an eccentric old man, invites to his mansion in the country a curious assortment of individuals who have one thing in common - they are Nazi sympathisers who expect to be presented with a survivor of the Third Reich. When one of the guests, Mathyas, is unmasked as a Soviet agent, the Marquis commands his two henchmen to dispose of him. After witnessing Mathyas's killing, Monique, a secretary, is also murdered, and her death is blamed on the librarian Mérignac by a mysterious blind man, Commander Dromart. Far from being visually impaired, the latter is in fact a senior agent in the French security services who is on a mission to arrange the capture of a group of dangerous Fascists. Commander Dromart will need to exercise all of his cunning if he is to thwart the Marquis and uncover the identity of the Nazi figurehead...

• Director: Georges Lautner
• Script: Pierre Laroche, Jacques Robert (dialogue), Colonel Rémy (novel)
• Cinematographer: Maurice Fellous
• Music: Jean Yatove
• Cast: Paul Meurisse (Le commandant Théobald Dromard dit 'Le Monocle'), Elga Andersen (Martha), Bernard Blier (Commissaire Tournmire), Pierre Blanchar (le marquis de Villemaur), Jacques Marin (Trochu), Jacques Dufilho (Charvet, le guide), Albert Rémy (Mérignac), Nico Pepe (Brozzi), Raymond Meunier (Raymond), Raoul Saint-Yves (Jean), Catherine Sola (Monique), Marie Dubois (Bénédicte de Villemaur), Gérard Buhr (Heinrich), Lutz Gabor (Mathias), Alain Bouvette (Un inspecteur), Yvonne Gradelet (Une visiteuse du château), Jean Sylvère (Un inspecteur)
• Country: France
• Language: French
• Support: Black and White
• Runtime: 88 min
• Aka: The Black Monocle

The very best of French film comedy

The best of American film noir

Continental Films, quality cinema under the Nazi Occupation