Year: 2004
Directed by Jean-Paul Salomé
Romain Duris, Eva Green, Kristin Scott Thomas, Mathieu Carrière, Pascal Greggory
Music by Debbie Wiseman

Arsène Lupin is a ponderous film sorely in need of a director who knows how to tell a story. All of the other elements (costumes, set, cinematography, music) for a great motion picture are in place, except for the narrative. Having said that, the film is enthralling for all it’s running time. The pace never slackens, and you’ve got to keep your eyes peeled and pay heed to every utterance from every character, no matter how minor, simply to ascertain what is going on.

I’ll try and paraphrase the plot, but believe me, there is much more going on than these few simple paragraphs will convey. First we meet the boy Arsène Lupin. He is the son of a master thief. One fine day, the police arrive to arrest Arsène’s father, but the rogue escapes on horseback.

Many years later, Arsène (Romain Duris) has grown into a dashing young gentleman and followed in his father’s footsteps. He is a master thief. On an elegant cruise liner, Arsène is making short work of the many diamond encrusted necklaces, bracelets and ear rings adorning the female passengers on board. Arsène’s handiwork lands him in trouble and he has to make his escape by diving over the side of the ship into the briny blue below. Luckily the ship isn’t too far from shore.

As the film unfolds, we hear about the legend of King Louis’ lost treasure. Well it is not so much lost, but secreted away many years previously by some monks. The key to the location of the treasure is hidden in four gold crucifixes which have been scattered throughout the country.

Arsène acquires a partner, Josephine (Kristine Scott Thoms), and together they start unravelling the clues which will lead them to the treasure cache. But several things stand in their way. The first is a secret society, much like the Illuminati, who wish to find the treasure to enforce their candidate for the throne of France. Not that it is a democratic process, mind you – they simply want to take control – using the treasure, not only as a financial fillip, but also as a symbol of their right to rule.

The second obstacle is the murderous Beaumagnan (Pascal Greggory). Beaumagnan used to be a member of the secret society but was dismissed after having an affair with Joesephine. He now, not only wants the treasure, but also wants revenge on both the secret society and Joesphine.

Adding to the many layers of plot convolution is that Josephine, who looks beautiful and youthful, is in fact over one hundred years old. She drinks a ‘magic potion’ to keep her youthful.

There are many other characters in the story, but only one other worth mentioning here, and that is Clarrise (Eva Green). Clarisse was Arsène’s childhood sweetheart and provides shelter for him when he is on the run from the authorities. As the story progresses, she is the only character he can truly trust.

Arsène Lupin, as a film, while struggling for coherency in places is a very entertaining trip, borrowing heavily from Fantomas, Indiana Jones, and H.R. Haggard’s SHE. But of course, Arsène Lupin himself, has a rich history appearing in numerous novels, movies and television series. Arsène Lupin is the type of film that may benefit from repeat viewings, simply because there is so much going on.