L’Aventurière

Having faked an automobile accident, an adventuress is taken into the home of a "ganadero" (a landowner of the Camargue), whom she seduces. Her intention is to steal, with the aid of an accomplice, a cheque which represents the proceeds of a sale of cattle. Her plan is foiled however, thanks to the dedication of the ganadero’s young secretary. Entirely shot on location in the Camargue, this is one of the earliest of Feuillade’s surviving films clearly to demonstrate his predilection for systematically mixing documentary and fiction — though the idea seems already to have been evident in the films he shot in Britanny during the summer of 1909, for example La Légende des phares. Unfortunately none of these films has survived complete.

Directed by Louis Feuillade, L’Aventurière leans on a strong ensemble — Yvette Andréyor, Renée Carl — to carry a story that balances spectacle with character.

The film landed with audiences for its craft and performances, and remains one of the most talked-about screen titles of 1910.