“The Black Book” (1949)

The Black Book 

Also known as: Reign of Terror

Brief Description:

A powerful figure in the French Revolution desperately seeks his book listing those marked for death, thereby guaranteeing his rise to dictatorship.

Date: 1949

Genre: American historical adventure thriller film noir

Running time: 1 hour 29 minutes 

Cast: 

Robert Cummings as Charles d’Aubigny

Richard Basehart as Maximilien Robespierre

Richard Hart as François Barras

Arlene Dahl as Madelon

Arnold Moss as Fouché

Norman Lloyd as Tallien

Charles McGraw as Sergeant

Beulah Bondi as Grandma Blanchard

Jess Barker as Louis Antoine de Saint-Just

Wade Crosby as Danton

Wilton Graff as the Marquis de Lafayette

Mary Currier as Mme Duval

John Doucette as Pierre Blanchard

Russ Tamblyn as the Blanchards’ oldest son

Ellen Lowe as Marie Blanchard

Anthony Sydes as the Blanchards’ youngest son

Georgette Windsor as Cecile

Shepperd Strudwick as Napoleon Bonaparte (voice) 

Director: Anthony Mann

Production company: Eagle-Lion Films

Wikipedia page

Watch on Archive

(watched on Tubi)

Setting/Aesthetic/Feel: 3/5

Honestly, when I started this, I was emphatically not a fan. It's so extremely American. Everyone has the strongest American accents and pronounces all the French names in English. It's excessively jarring. It felt like a play about France, not a movie set in France. 

Characters: 3.5/5

I like d'Aubigny and Madelon... sort of. At least I didn't actively dislike them. I hated Robespierre, of course, and Fouché; and St. Juste, who completely baffled me because I kept thinking he was Armand St. Juste from The Scarlet Pimpernel. (Since Louis Antoine de St. Juste actually existed, I wonder why Baroness Orczy named her heroine's family the St. Justes???) The Blanchards were all nice people, and everyone else I was heartily indifferent towards.  

Plot: 3.5/5

So, first off, the film is so dark I had the hardest time figuring out what was happening 50% of the time. The dialogue, though I had captions, didn't help much. The basic premise, though—the loyal d'Aubigny taking the place of a famous executioner Robespierre called in from Stratsbourg, and trying to help stop him from being dictator by finding the little black book for Barras—was interesting, and by the mid-point I was invested. There were four specific points in the film that made me go from "meh" to "hm": the whole part about Madelon in Robespierre's power, which I felt had great potential as a storyline (I feel like it was underused in the film, though); the scene where St. Juste tries to convince the littlest Blanchard boy to spill the beans but kicks the cat and gets scorned for his pains; the scene where Robespierre almost talks himself out of trouble (reminded me of Mark Antony in Julius Caesar); and the ending with the Napoleon cameo. Also, the scene at the bridge did worry me, so I guess I was more invested than I thought. 

Romance: 3/5

The most passionate kisses I've seen in a black and white movie, lol. I didn't particularly care for d'Aubigny & Madelon's romance, especially since it's never explained why they quarrelled and broke up in the first place. 

Content: 2/5 (low)

Possibly language; drinking; low-necked dresses.

Violence: 3/5 (medium)

2 scenes of torture (a bare-chested man hung by his arms in Robespierre's room & screaming when he's hurt; Madelon hung in the same place & also screaming when hurt); someone is shot in the face; someone is choked out on screen; lots of fighting. 

Overall: 3.5/5

Though emphatically not the best—I'd call it "fluff" entertainment, but it's too grim to be fluff, so maybe just "shallow"?—it has potential and reminded me of some elements of the The Scarlet Pimpernel. I'm not sorry I watched it and I may even rewatch it sometime.