Le Masque de la Méduse
Encyclopedia
Le masque de la Méduse (The Mask of Medusa) is a 2009
fantasy horror film directed by Jean Rollin
. The film is a modern day story of the Greek mythological
tale of the Gorgon
and inspired by the 1964 classic horror of the same name
. It is Jean Rollin's final film, as the director died in late 2010.
. But in 2009, Rollin began preparation for his next project, in which he entitled Le masque de la Méduse, a modern day re-telling of the Gorgon, a mythological female creature with snakes for hair. The film is inspired by the 1964 classic Hammer Horror The Gorgon and the 1981 cult classic Clash of the Titans
. Rollin originally directed the film as a one hour short, which was screened at the Cinémathèque de Toulouse, but after the release, Rollin decided to add twenty minutes of additional scenes and then cut the film into two distinct part, as he did in his first feature Le Viol du Vampire
. The film was shot on location at the Golden Gate Aquarium, the Père Lachaise Cemetery
and on stage the Theatre du Grande Guignol, which is where the longest part of the film takes place. It was shot on HD
video
on a low-budget of €150,000, before the release it was inflated (blow-up) to 35mm film.
2009 in film
The year 2009 saw the release of many films. Seven made the top 50 list of highest-grossing films, and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced that as of this year, their Best Picture category would consist of ten nominees, rather than five .- Highest-grossing films :Please note...
fantasy horror film directed by Jean Rollin
Jean Rollin
Jean Michel Rollin Roth Le Gentil was a French film director, actor, and novelist best known for his films in the fantastique genre such as the vampire film Le Viol du Vampire and the first French gore film Les Raisins de la Mort .-Early life:Jean Rollin was born in Neuilly-sur-Seine , France to...
. The film is a modern day story of the Greek mythological
Greek mythology
Greek mythology is the body of myths and legends belonging to the ancient Greeks, concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world, and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. They were a part of religion in ancient Greece...
tale of the Gorgon
Gorgon
In Greek mythology, the Gorgon was a terrifying female creature. The name derives from the Greek word gorgós, which means "dreadful." While descriptions of Gorgons vary across Greek literature, the term commonly refers to any of three sisters who had hair of living, venomous snakes, and a...
and inspired by the 1964 classic horror of the same name
The Gorgon
The Gorgon is a 1964 British horror film directed by Terence Fisher for Hammer.It stars Peter Cushing, Christopher Lee, Barbara Shelley and Richard Pasco. The film was photographed by Michael Reed, and designed by Bernard Robinson. For the score James Bernard combined a soprano with a little-known...
. It is Jean Rollin's final film, as the director died in late 2010.
Cast
- Simone Rollin as la Méduse
- Sabine Lenoël as Euryale
- Marlène Delcambre as Sthéno
- Juliette Moreau as Juliette
- Delphine Montoban as Cornelius
- Jean-Pierre BouyxouJean-Pierre BouyxouJean-Pierre Bouyxou is a French film critic, author, filmmaker and actor.-Career:He started his career as a writer in 1964 when his article was published in fanzines...
as le gardien - Bernard Charnacé as le collectionneur
- Agnès Pierron as la colleuse d'affiche au Grand-Guignol
- Gabrielle Rollin as la petite contrebassiste
- Jean RollinJean RollinJean Michel Rollin Roth Le Gentil was a French film director, actor, and novelist best known for his films in the fantastique genre such as the vampire film Le Viol du Vampire and the first French gore film Les Raisins de la Mort .-Early life:Jean Rollin was born in Neuilly-sur-Seine , France to...
as l'homme qui enterre la tête - Thomas Smith as Thomas
Production
It was thought that Rollin's 2007 film La nuit des horloges was the final film of his career as he had mentioned in the past, as he did many years before after he directed Killing CarKilling Car
Killing Car is a 1989 film directed by Jean Rollin.-Synopsis:A young Asian woman known as "The Car Woman" to her victims goes on a massive killing spree, leaving a little toy car among the bodies, as her calling card and with two police detectives on her trail.Firstly she wanders into a scrapyard...
. But in 2009, Rollin began preparation for his next project, in which he entitled Le masque de la Méduse, a modern day re-telling of the Gorgon, a mythological female creature with snakes for hair. The film is inspired by the 1964 classic Hammer Horror The Gorgon and the 1981 cult classic Clash of the Titans
Clash of the Titans (1981 film)
Clash of the Titans is an American 1981 fantasy–adventure film involving the Greek hero Perseus. It was released on June 12, 1981 and earned a gross profit of $41 million domestically, on a $15 million budget , by which it was the 11th highest grossing film of the year. A novelization of the film...
. Rollin originally directed the film as a one hour short, which was screened at the Cinémathèque de Toulouse, but after the release, Rollin decided to add twenty minutes of additional scenes and then cut the film into two distinct part, as he did in his first feature Le Viol du Vampire
Le Viol du Vampire
Le Viol du Vampire is a 1968 film directed by Jean Rollin, which is his directorial debut. The film consists of two parts: The Rape of the Vampire, and The Vampire Woman/Queen of the Vampires...
. The film was shot on location at the Golden Gate Aquarium, the Père Lachaise Cemetery
Père Lachaise Cemetery
Père Lachaise Cemetery is the largest cemetery in the city of Paris, France , though there are larger cemeteries in the city's suburbs.Père Lachaise is in the 20th arrondissement, and is reputed to be the world's most-visited cemetery, attracting hundreds of thousands of visitors annually to the...
and on stage the Theatre du Grande Guignol, which is where the longest part of the film takes place. It was shot on HD
High-definition video
High-definition video or HD video refers to any video system of higher resolution than standard-definition video, and most commonly involves display resolutions of 1,280×720 pixels or 1,920×1,080 pixels...
video
Video camera
A video camera is a camera used for electronic motion picture acquisition, initially developed by the television industry but now common in other applications as well. The earliest video cameras were those of John Logie Baird, based on the electromechanical Nipkow disk and used by the BBC in...
on a low-budget of €150,000, before the release it was inflated (blow-up) to 35mm film.
Release
The film was not released theatrically, it was, however premiered at the eleventh edition of the Extreme Cinema Film Festival at the Cinémathèque de Toulouse, in which it hosted "An Evening with Jean Rollin" on 19 November 2009. It was shown as a double feature, with Rollin's 2007 film La nuit des horloges showing at showing at 20.30 and the main feature Le masque de la Méduse showing at 22.30.Availabilty
The DVD has no official release at present, although, it is currently only available for a limited time with the first 150 copies of Rollin's book Jean Rollin: Écrits complets Volume 1. ISBN 978-2-84608-277-8External links
- The making of La masque de la Méduse