''Belphegor, Phantom of the Louvre'' () is a 2001 French

fantasy film Fantasy films are films that belong to the fantasy genre with fantastic themes, usually Magic (paranormal), magic, supernatural events, mythology, folklore, or exotic fantasy worlds. The Film genre, genre is considered a form of speculative fic ...

directed by

Jean-Paul Salomé Jean-Paul Salomé (; born 14 September 1960) is a French director and screenwriter. Filmography References External links * {{DEFAULTSORT:Salome, Jean-Paul 1960 births Living people Film directors from Paris French male screenw ...

. It stars

Sophie Marceau Sophie Marceau (; born Sophie Danièle Sylvie Maupu, 17 November 1966) is a French actress. As a teenager, she achieved popularity with her debut films ''La Boum'' (1980) and ''La Boum 2'' (1982), receiving a César Award for Most Promising Act ...

Michel Serrault Michel Serrault (24 January 1928 – 29 July 2007) was a French stage and film actor who appeared from 1954 until 2007 in more than 130 films. Life and career His first professional job was in a touring production in Germany of Molière's '' Les ...

Frédéric Diefenthal Frédéric Diefenthal (born 26 July 1968 in Saint-Mandé) is a French actor and director. Biography Diefenthal grew up in Saint-Puy in southwestern France. He is Jewish. Prior to acting, Diefenthal pursued apprenticeships in the hotel industry ...

, and

Julie Christie Julie Frances Christie (born 14 April 1940) is a British actress. Christie's accolades include an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, a Golden Globe, and a Screen Actors Guild Award. She has appeared in six films ranked in the British Film Institu ...

. It was written by Salomé,

Danièle Thompson Danièle Claude Renée Tannenbaum, also known as Danièle Thompson (born ) is a Monaco, Monegasque film director and screenwriter. Thompson is the daughter of film director Gérard Oury, and actress Jacqueline Roman. Life Thompson was born ...

, and Jérôme Tonnerre. The 2001 film is about a mummy's spirit that possesses a woman (Marceau) in

the Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is a national art museum in Paris, France, and one of the most famous museums in the world. It is located on the Rive Droite, Right Bank of the Seine in the city's 1st arrondissement of Paris, 1st arron ...

. ''Belphegor, Phantom of the Louvre'' was filmed on location at the

Musée du Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is a national art museum in Paris, France, and one of the most famous museums in the world. It is located on the Rive Droite, Right Bank of the Seine in the city's 1st arrondissement of Paris, 1st arron ...

, the first feature film to be shot in part inside the world-famous museum.

Source material

This adaptation was loosely based upon the 1927 Arthur Bernède horror novel '' Belphégor'', which had appeared in concert with a film serial version of the story. A television

miniseries In the United States, a miniseries or mini-series is a television show or series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. Many miniseries can also be referred to, and shown, as a television film. " Limited series" is ...

had appeared in 1965.

Juliette Gréco Juliette Gréco (; 7 February 1927 – 23 September 2020) was a French singer and actress. Her best known songs are "Paris Canaille" (1962, originally sung by Léo Ferré), "La Javanaise" (1963, written by Serge Gainsbourg for Gréco) and "Désh ...

, who was the original Belphégor in the television miniseries, makes a cameo appearance as the woman in the cemeterien

Plot

A rare collection of artifacts from an archeological dig in Egypt are brought to the famous

in Paris. While experts are using a laser scanning device to determine the age of a sarcophagus, a spirit escapes and makes its way into the museum's electrical system. Museum curator Faussier ( Jean-Francois Balmer) brings in noted Egyptologist, Glenda Spencer (

), to examine the findings, and she announces that the mummy inside the coffin was actually the evil spirit

Belphegor Belphegor (or Baal Peor, Hebrew: בַּעַל-פְּעוֹר baʿal-pəʿōr – “''Lord of the Gap''”) is, in Christianity, a demon associated with one of the seven deadly sins. According to religious tradition, he helps people make discov ...

. Meanwhile, Lisa (

), a young woman who lives across the street from the museum, follows her runaway cat into the Louvre after closing time. She accidentally receives an electrical shock that transfers the stray spirit into her body. Soon Lisa is disguising herself as Belphegor and making off with the rare Egyptian treasures on display at the museum, convinced that they are rightfully hers. When Belphegor proves more than a match for the Louvre's security forces, renowned detective Verlac (

) is brought out of retirement to find out why the museum's Egyptian collection has been shrinking.

Cast

as Lisa / Belphegor *

as Verlac *

as Martin *

as Glenda Spender *

Jean-François Balmer Jean-François Balmer (born 18 April 1946 in Valangin) is a Switzerland, Swiss actor. He has worked extensively in France, French Film, cinema, television and stage productions since the early 1970s. Theater Filmography Cinema Televisio ...

as Bertrand Faussier *

Patachou Henriette Ragon (10 June 1918 – 30 April 2015), better known as Patachou, was a French singer and actress, best-known for popularizing Georges Brassens songs by singing them before he became famous. She was an Officier of the Légion d'honneu ...

as Geneviève *

Lionel Abelanski Lionel Abelanski (born 22 October 1964) is a French actor. Life and career Abelanski was born in Paris, France. He has appeared in television and film roles since 1989. In 1999 he was nominated for the César Award for Most Promising Actor Cesa ...

as Simonnet *

Françoise Lépine Françoise Lépine is a French actress. Theatre Filmography References External links * * French film actresses Living people 20th-century French actresses 21st-century French actresses Year of birth missing (living people) P ...

as Suzanne Dupré *

François Levantal François Levantal (born 14 October 1960) is a French actor. He has appeared in more than one hundred films since 1986. Filmography Theater Music videos External links * {{DEFAULTSORT:Levantal, Francois 1960 births Living people F ...

as Mangin * Jacques Martial as Félix * Philippe Maymat as Bob * Pierre Aussedat as Pierre Desfontaines *

Laurent Bateau Laurent Bateau is a French actor. He has appeared in more than eighty films since 1992. Career He started his career in theater in 1991, with a role in ''Richard II'' by William Shakespeare, directed by Yves Gasc. He first appeared in cinema i ...

as Louvre warden * Matteo Vallon as Cemetery employee * Jean-Claude Bolle-Reddat as Cemetery warden *

as Woman in the cemetery

Reception

Critical response

Critical reception for ''Belphegor, Phantom of the Louvre'' has been mostly negative. Justin Felix from

DVD Talk DVD Talk is a home video news and review website launched in 1999 by Geoffrey Kleinman. History Kleinman founded the site in January 1999 in Beaverton, Oregon. Besides news and reviews, it features information on hidden DVD features known as ...

gave the film a mixed two and a half out of five stars, writing, "''Belphegor: Phantom of the Louvre'' is modestly entertaining, despite some very familiar plot elements and so-so CGI work." Chris Parry from ''eFilmCritic'' awarded the film two out of five stars, panning the film's acting, special effects, screenplay, and familiar premise. Steve Barton from

Dread Central Dread Central is an American website founded in 2006 that is dedicated to horror news, interviews, and reviews. It covers horror films, comics, novels, and toys. Dread Central has won the Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Award for Best Website f ...

rated the film two and a half out of five stars, writing, "For all that it has going for it in the acting department, ''Belphégor Phantom of the Louvre'' comes up on the short side of the fence nearly everywhere else. It's a decent little time killer, but you'll ultimately start forgetting about it even before the end credits run."

References

External links

* * {{Jean-Paul Salomé 2000s French-language films 2001 horror films 2001 fantasy films 2000s dark fantasy films 2000s ghost films French dark fantasy films Films set in Paris French ghost films Films based on horror novels Films about spirit possession Films based on French novels Films based on television series 2001 films Films directed by Jean-Paul Salomé Films set in art museums and galleries Films produced by Alain Sarde Films scored by Bruno Coulais 2000s French films BAC Films films Films based on works by Arthur Bernède