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"That's the sound of the men working on the chain gang..."

Jean-Pierre Aumont, Marcel Dalio, and Pierre Fresnay in Chéri-Bibi (1938)

Pierre Fresnay and Suzet Maïs in Chéri-Bibi (1938)

Pierre Fresnay

Jean-Pierre Aumont

Marcel Dalio

Jacques Constant

Gaston Leroux

An innocent young man ,burglar Cheri-Bibi and his gangsters are sent to a penal colony.

Léon Mathot

Chéri-Bibi

&quot;That&apos;s the sound of the men working on the chain gang...&quot;

Second version of a less famous Gaston Leroux&apos;s novel;unlike &quot;Mystere De La Chambre Jaune &quot; or &quot;phantom of the opera&quot;it&apos;s not a murder mystery;Cheri-Bibi is a gangster flanked by accomplices such as &quot;La Ficelle&quot; 

This one by Leon Mathot stars Pierre Fresnay as the lead -perhaps not a good choice ,he&apos;s better on the right side of the law,at portraying Commissaire Wens.Jean-Pierre Aumont , romantic male lead of the era ,portrays the nephew of a millionaire,falsely accused of his uncle&apos;s murder;Cheri-Bibi ,his gang and the young man end up on a ship en route to the penal colony;the villains try to take over the ship,but their attempt fails : they will work as lumberjacks deep in the virgin forest ,after a painful journey .As always since &quot;Pepe Le Moko&quot; ,Marcel Dalio is the unfortunate hateful informer .

The story is muddled in its first part and the interest comes up with the beginning of the voyage,during which Mathot uses a very original technique: to carry out a plan to get rid of the wardens ,the prisoners use the sign language ,and there are subtitles for the viewers who do not know it;the priest&apos;s sermon,before the ship leaves for the green hell,is quite funny;and the ending shows a chivalrous Cheri -Bibi .The 14th July letter is also a good moment ,but the &quot;Paname (=Paris) &quot; nostalgia comes directly from &quot;Pepe Le Moko&quot;.And Aumont shows a tendency to overplay in the last part.

&quot;All day long they work so hard till the sun is going down&quot; (Sam Cooke)

Besides the three black and white movies,Cheri-Bibi would be adapted a fourth time in the seventies ,this time as a miniseries.

Second version of a less famous Gaston Leroux's novel;unlike "Mystere De La Chambre Jaune " or "phantom of the opera"it's not a murder mystery;Cheri-Bibi is a gangster flanked by accomplices such as "La Ficelle" 

This one by Leon Mathot stars Pierre Fresnay as the lead -perhaps not a good choice ,he's better on the right side of the law,at portraying Commissaire Wens.Jean-Pierre Aumont , romantic male lead of the era ,portrays the nephew of a millionaire,falsely accused of his uncle's murder;Cheri-Bibi ,his gang and the young man end up on a ship en route to the penal colony;the villains try to take over the ship,but their attempt fails : they will work as lumberjacks deep in the virgin forest ,after a painful journey .As always since "Pepe Le Moko" ,Marcel Dalio is the unfortunate hateful informer .

The story is muddled in its first part and the interest comes up with the beginning of the voyage,during which Mathot uses a very original technique: to carry out a plan to get rid of the wardens ,the prisoners use the sign language ,and there are subtitles for the viewers who do not know it;the priest's sermon,before the ship leaves for the green hell,is quite funny;and the ending shows a chivalrous Cheri -Bibi .The 14th July letter is also a good moment ,but the "Paname (=Paris) " nostalgia comes directly from "Pepe Le Moko".And Aumont shows a tendency to overplay in the last part.

"All day long they work so hard till the sun is going down" (Sam Cooke)

Besides the three black and white movies,Cheri-Bibi would be adapted a fourth time in the seventies ,this time as a miniseries.

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