"Le Mystère De La Chambre Jaune" is undeniably a historically important film as one of the earliest French talkies, and what's more, one of the earliest talkie locked-room murder mysteries / old-dark-house thrillers / courtroom dramas. It is stilted, static, confusing (there are a lot of people to keep track of, and sometimes it's not clear who or why all those people are in a scene together), and technically rough-around-the edges, but it does boast an acrobatic amateur detective, a surprising resolution and occasionally creative use of sound (meow!). The film also begins and ends rather originally: at the start it verbally announces its credits, and at the end its own sequel. ** out of 4.
Review of The Mystery of the Yellow Room
