The first proper serial was the Selig Polyscope Company's The Adventures of Kathlyn (1913) a vehicle for Kathlyn Williams, a damsel who was never in any such distress , appositely billed as 'the girl without fear' These episodic reels ran through thirteen installments as the intrepid heroine faced a barrage of bizarre dangers and sinister scenarios in India. In 1914, the powers that were at Pathe, dominated the silent serial market, produced its first venture in the type. The Perils of Pauline starred Pearl White, arguably the greatest silent serial of them all. Miss White followed suit with The Exploits of Elaine in 1914, aided by Arnold Daly who played Craig Kennedy, the all the rage detective hero and brainchild of novelist Arthur B, Reeve. Teamed together, they battled against a villain called The Clutching Hand - the first of many extravagantly named menaces that were to thrill serial audiences. Pearl White would reprise her popular role in two sequels - The New Exploits of Elaine and The Romance of Elaine, both released in 1915, as well as starring in an octet of serials in the coming decade before retiring to France in 1924.
In Paris, two popular writers, Marcel Allain and Pierre Souvestre would publish their phenomenally successful series of crime thrillers, themed with the exploits of the master criminal Fantomas.
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| The Fabulous Fantomas |
There were 32 Fantomas stories in all - and for 6,000 fr. Gaumont purchased the film rights. The studio's production-chief Louis Feuillade made the film in collaboration with the authors who were often present during the shooting to lend a hand with the perpetual improvisation. However, Feuillade's Fontamas was not a genuine serial as it were. It was comprised of a series of self-contained films released in increments over the period of one year (1913-14) and varying between three to five reels. But with it, the fabulous Feuillade style was born.
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| The famous Feuillade feel |
And high-octane and enjoyable as it is, Fantomas loses slightly today by being shown in one continuous loop, displayed in a form for which it never was intended. With a yet to be desired dynamic, its repetitions become somewhat obtrusive and climaxes are thoroughly misplaced. Also, Rene Navarre as the villain-hero lacks the panache of the central figures in Les Vampires and Jules (respectively 1916).