THE ADVENTURES OF ARSÈNE LUPIN (1957) – Lupin engages in a series of daring criminal schemes. His activities arouse the interest of Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany, who offers Lupin a challenge: to steal a jewel of great value from a secret hiding place. Should Lupin accept the wager? Starring Robert Lamoureux, Liselotte Pulver and O.E. Hasse; directed by Jacques Becker (Casque d’or, Touchez pas au grisbi).

SIGNED, ARSÈNE LUPIN (1959) – At the end of the Great War, Lupin resumes his mischievous lifestyle with zeal. The theft of three paintings committed by an adversary leads him to the mysterious treasure of the Golden Fleece. Starring Robert Lamoureux, Alida Valli and Jacques Dufilho; directed by Yves Robert (War of the Buttons, The Tall Blond Man with One Black Shoe).

ARSÈNE LUPIN VS. ARSÈNE LUPIN (1962) – Lupin is dead! And soon after he has been laid to rest, his two sons, François and Gérard, decide to go into their father’s profession in order to rescue some gems for a gorgeous princess. Starring Jean-Claude Brialy, Jean-Pierre Cassel and Françoise Dorléac; directed by Édouard Molinaro (Back to the Wall, La Cage aux Folles).

For thoughts on the Arsène Lupin Collection, please check out our discussion on The Video Attic:

[youtube https://youtu.be/XOfQo2Hz2JA?t=2822]

Video Quality

The Adventures of Arsène Lupin, Signed, Arsène Lupin and Arsène Lupin vs. Arsène Lupin come to Blu-Ray with the first two films sharing a disc and the latter given its own disc. These films share many of the same qualities, so I will mostly be judging them as a group while pointing out noticeable differences when necessary. There are no specific details as to the source of these transfers, but all of them look to have been carefully restored at some point. The quality stays in the “quite good” range with the occasional variance in either direction. Every film retains a small amount of underlying print damage and other source anomalies, but nothing that would ever ruin the experience

The set begins with The Adventures of Arsène Lupin, which is the only film in the set provided in sumptuous color. The hues are bright and bold throughout with a great saturation of the environments. The gorgeous black-and-white photography of the remaining two films holds up really well as they are given a chance to shine in high definition with natural grain intact. The grain field can run a bit inconsistent, but it does remain intact and is thankfully not managed or scrubbed of its texture. Even when the grain gets a bit heavy, it never truly appears clumpy or unnatural.

There is a terrific amount of detail present throughout with subtle textures in the environments and within the clothing and production design. The contrast is stable with only a minor level of density fluctuation in the print. Black levels are solid even if they could be a touch deeper. There are no substantial occurrences of black crush or compression artifacts amongst any of these three. Print damage has been cleaned up substantially even if some lingers. Although it may not be completely pristine, Kino Classics has done well for these films.

Audio Quality

The Blu-Ray set comes with a perfectly pleasant DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio track for each of these three films in their original French with optional English subtitles. Dialogue comes through clearly without sounding muffled or overtaxed. It is balanced favorably with the environmental elements so information never gets lost in the mix. The is a very light occurrence of hissing, humming and crackles at random intervals that likely date back to the source elements. The three scores that accompany these films avoid overpowering the dialogue and other important information. There is not much in the way of overt damage to the audio. Kino Classics has given this set a fine audio presentation.

Special Features

Trailer: The three-and-a-half minute trailer for Arsène Lupin vs. Arsène Lupin is provided.

Final Thoughts

The Arsène Lupin Collection is a pretty enjoyable ensemble of films that show that crime does pay – and it can deliver quite a fun time. The first two efforts in this set are by far the strongest, as they show the character at his confident best within these larger than life adventures. Arsène Lupin vs. Arsène Lupin is a bit of a disappointment as we do not get the “traditional” title character, as much as the film attempts to make us care about his progeny. Couple this with the extended runtime, and you have a misguided affair. Despite this, the strength of the other two films is great enough to recommend this to fans of sly crime films. Kino Classics has released a Blu-Ray set featuring a strong A/V presentation and pretty much nothing in the realm of special features. Recommended

Arsène Lupin Collection is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray.

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: Kino Classics has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.