Protéa

Protéa is the last film directed by VictorinHippolyte Jasset one of the early film pioneers in France The hero of this film is a female spy an acrobatic MataHari played by his favorite actress Josette Andriot who wore a characteristic costume of a closefitting black jersey two years before Musidora achieved cult status with her similar appearance as Irma Vep This final masterpiece reflects Jassets popular style rhythmic action fantastic realism rich visuals an anarchistic philosophy a disdain for psychology and an attention to lighting that earned him the nickname the Rembrandt of the cinema Although Jasset died shortly after completion the film had considerable success and Andriot went on to make four more films in the series with other directors