Adventures of Adele Blanc-Sec

This movie pissed me the hell off, and not for the reasons one might expect.

You won’t see me write something like that very often.

I recently watched Adele Blanc-Sec on Amazon Instant Video, after wanting to see it for quite some time. It is based upon a comic book/graphic novel series out of France that started back in the seventies.

It stars Louise Bourgoin as Adele Blanc-Sec, directed by Luc Besson.

Louise Bourgoin is the best thing about this film, and she does her best to save it in its dying third act.

So what about this movie pissed me off? Well, let me tell you.

I loved the first thirty-five minutes of this move. Loved it. Even if the plot of the film was unclear and Adele’s motivation was unclear. The first thirty-five minutes were so good and well done, I believed that everything would become clear in the second half.

Boy, was I wrong.

The first half of the film showcases Adele as an intelligent supreme adventurer that can overcome any obstacle with ease.

The second half of the film shows a completely different version of Adele. One who is a fool that can’t seem to do anything right, and it turns out what we thought she did right in the first half was horribly wrong. Any signs of intelligence also slips away in the second half as the script devolves into a mess.

Everything starts to unravel at the half way point during an overlong segment which sees Adele try to rescue a Professor from death row. This segment is long, overdone and boring. Here Adele dawns a number of different disguises to rescue the Professor, only to be caught every time and escorted from the prison. Why she is never arrested, is puzzling.

The movie, nor Adele herself, recovers after this segment.

When it comes to Adventures of Adele Blanc-Sec, Luc Besson is like a prizefighter who puts together a great game plan, but forgets how to throw the knockout punch.
FINAL VIEW: Mixed. There are good things about the film, just not enough. Its second half fizzled and dies long before the film ends.

Worth a look for those who are curious, but ultimately an average film one won’t miss.

RATING: 4.75