The Extraordinary Adventures of Adèle Blanc-Sec

I am a Tardi fan. The comics by his hand are unique. I read the books in Dutch. The translator also changed the names of the characters from French to Dutch. In order to help the reader to understand the meaning. F.i. Adele Blanc-Sec is changed to Isabelle Avondrood. No problem. I still reread them. But now the movie. It is well made and entertaining. That one expect from Luc Besson. But there are some flaws, that the reader notices at once. Like another critic already wrote: the story is a mix of two of the novels and some Egyptian story lines. The actress playing Adele is kind of Rachel Weisz in the Mummy or one of Indiana Jones' sidekicks. That is a pity. Because the real Adele is sarcastic, a little bohemian and not really pretty. She dresses almost shabby. The storyline in the books show a France that is not so nice as the movie makes us believe. The policemen are incompetent, have no trouble beating up prisoners, lunatic scientists roam the street or hang out in the catacombs under the city. Homicidal maniacs want Adele dead, the Great War is not depicted as a heroic event, but one that left an nation with numerous deaths and invalids. That is the atmosphere in the books. And that is something I really miss in the movie. But, like I said already: it is good entertainment.

An adventure set in the early part of the 20th century and set in Paris in the years before and after WWI, revolve around the protagonist Adèle Blanc-Sec in a succession of far-fetched incidents . It is loosely based on the comic book series of the same name by Jacques Tardi and, as in the comic, follows the eponymous writer and a number of reoccurring side characters in 1910s Paris and beyond, in this episode revolving around parapsychology and ultra-advanced Ancient Egyptian technology. A cynical heroine, she is initially a novelist of popular fiction, who turns to investigative journalism as her research and subsequent adventures reveal further details of the mystical world of crime. It starts with the popular novelist named Adele ( rising central star Louise Bourgoin) and her dealings with would-be suitors (Amalric), a Police Inspector (Lellouch), a Pterosaur , and other distractions . She finds herself involved after returning from Egypt, where she was searching for Ramesses II's mummified doctor. She wants to revive the mummy with the help of Espérandieu (Nercessian) so the Egyptian doctor can save her sister Agathe (Clermont) .

This entertaining film packs fantasy , Science and action which both pastiche and subvert adventure and speculative fiction of the period ¨Belle Epoque¨. The popularity of the comic has made it much in demand for adaptation into other media, the first to be approved by Tardi being a projected trilogy of live-action feature films adapted and directed by Luc Besson, the first of which, also titled like the comic book The Extraordinary Adventures of Adèle Blanc-Sec was released in France on April 14, 2010 and latterly in numerous other markets, including the United Kingdom. The picture incorporates contemporary action film as well as much use of computer animation to portray its fanciful elements , furthermore visual effects within the form of the older-style adventure films they have largely superseded. Atmospheric musical score by Eric Serra , fitting splendidly to action and intrigue . Colorful cinematography by Thierry Arbogast and perfectly remastered . The motion picture is lavishly produced by Eurocorps (Besson Production Company) and professionally directed by Luc Besson with his ordinary visual pyrotechnics . He often casts Jean Reno (though here doesn't appear) and music always by Eric Serra. Besson is the greatest producer and director from France with hits as ¨Leon¨ , ¨Joan of Arc¨ , ¨The fifth element¨ , the ¨Taxi¨ series , ¨Big blue¨ , ¨Arthur and the Minimois¨ , ¨Nikita¨ and many others . Rating : Acceptable and passable, 6 .This is a highly amusing and frequently funny action-adventure romp with a witty script, sensational special effects and a terrific performances from main cast .

"Les aventures extraordinaires d'Adèle Blanc-Sec" is a good film. It almost qualifies for very good, but there a few small details which are poorly executed and which bar it from reaching its full potential.

The film has three excellent elements: masterful pacing, perfect editing and a great leading actress. Louise Bourgoin carries the movie with no apparent effort; the character of Mlle. Adèle Blanc-Sec "comme le vin" (*) fits right in with the minutely reconstructed Paris near the beginning of the 20th century. The quick pacing and seamless editing convey the thrill of moving from panel to panel in a comics (**) book (and I suspect that this was the intended effect).

(*) "Blanc sec" is French for "dry white". She helpfully tells a police officer that her name is "Dry White, as the wine", adding that he probably knows very well how to spell that.

(**) (For Americans) Note that in France and Belgium (and in Italy, to some extent) comics ("B.D." for "bandes dessinées") are an art form bearing little resemblance with Marvel's productions.

To get the most from the film you should watch it in the original French -- if you understand French, of course (subtitles may help). Part of the zany humor derives from the untranslatable undertones and rhythm of the dialog and narration.

The small details which detract from the overall beauty of the film consists in a few brief scenes where the computer-generated special effects should have been better. Carelessness is the word -- the vast majority of scenes containing CGI are well executed.

There are a number of rather sniffy reviews of this film on IMDb which are entirely unfair. It seems some viewers were misled by the preview and were expecting a French version of "The Mummy" or "Raiders". It really isn't at all. Despite featuring tomb-robbing, exciting escapes, prison breaks, pterodactyls and mummies this film is more like "The Adventures of Baron Munchausen" with better jokes or "The Fifth Element" set in France at the start of the 20th century. It's a surreal adventure comedy that never takes itself seriously.

The plot has journalist and adventurer Adele attempting to retrieve the mummy of an Egyptian physician so that he can be brought back to life by an eminent professor who has studied arcane Egyptian rituals. Unfortunately, the eminent professor has been practising his life- restoring skills on a pterodactyl which proceeds to terrorise Paris and he (the professor) is sent to prison. Can Adele rescue him?

You'll have to watch to find out.

I really enjoyed this. It is definitely sort of kooky so please don't expect "Pirates of the Caribbean" or something like that. It's an extremely silly, but very entertaining 1 hour and 45 minutes that has more in common with the campy comic-book adventures of "Doc Savage" than Indiana Jones. The very matter-of-fact mummies are a hoot as is the pterodactyl. Most importantly of all, the jokes are actually funny and I found myself laughing out loud (something I rarely do).

p.s. For those of you who think this film sounds suitable for little 'uns, well it probably is apart from the fact that this is a French film and therefore the heroine gets in the nip. Tell the little tykes to turn their backs.

Having been lucky to find it was showing at the cinema, I must admit I jumped at the chance to see it being a fan of Luc Besson. I didn't really know what to expect (having only seen trailers for the movie) and I never read the original stories, however I was pleasantly surprised.

Overall the film was very funny and had some very good set pieces, including a very enjoyable scene in Egypt and a scene in a Parisian prison that reminded me of the slapstick nature of the original "Pink Panthers". Louise Bourgoin was very good as the titular heroine and was able to pull off both charm and dead-pan humour effectively throughout the film, making her a pleasure to watch.

However I must admit that at times the plot did wear thin at places and I would be lying if I didn't say that the story itself was very silly. At times it felt as though I was watching a cross between "The Mummy Returns" and "The Crystal Skull" (although this movie is a far superior specimen) while at other times the film reverted to a more serious adventure tone, unable to properly balance the two tones.

All in all I enjoyed the film and would happily see it again. If you are the sort of person who enjoyed "Sahara" and "National Treasure" then this film is for you. On the other hand fans of the more refined explorer films such as "Raiders" might find little to relate to. That being said I do hope for is that the film will be successful enough to merit a sequel, even if the ending does leave it on a rather pointless cliffhanger.