Was the treasure of Pharaoh Khufu discovered during Napoleon's Egyptian campaign, brought back to France, and then hidden in Paris? Christian Robinson, a flamboyant archaeologist with unorthodox methods, is convinced of it, ever since the discovery of a mysterious inscription during new excavations in Cairo. Determined to decipher the clues left by Dominique Vivant Denon, the first director of the Louvre, Christian Robinson then embarks on a quest for the extraordinary treasure across Paris.
This quest takes us from the dusty archives of the Louvres to a cemetery to Malmaison,Josephine's château,don't forget to tip the guide .And the sewers (quotation of "les misérables" is de rigueur" ) and Paris metro,to boot!
Maurice Leblanc knew how to mix history with a detective story (notably " l'aiguille creuse" ) ; here the pedantic side of the screenplay is so glaring that the mystery gets lost in Fabrice Lucchini's erudition; the only comic relief ,so to speak ,is grandsonny's obligatory question:"who is it?"; the movie desperately looks towards a poor man's Indiana Jones : like in the fourth installment of the famous franchise, it involves the whole family ...
As if it weren't enough,there's the de rigueur psychological trauma ("my mom died in a car crash because of you!" ) ,but do not panic , the father had to conceal this family secret ,he's totally innocent.
It is as if the director ,towards the end of her far-fetched story,appreciated how dull it all was and desperately attempted to sweeten this stodgy brew by a last-minute hint: she calls Hergé to the rescue: "les sept boules de cristal" followed by the by-now-usual grandsonny's question:"who's Tintin?"
