Master of Terror

film serial by Feuillade

Also known as: “Fantômas”

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June 30, 2026

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The film serial Fantômas (1913–14), also known as Master of Terror, was the first serial directed by Louis Feuillade. This popular film featured intricate plots with disguises, kidnappings, and chases. It was followed by other influential serials like Les Vampires (1915) and Judex (1916), which helped save the French film industry. Musidora starred as Irma Vep in Les Vampires, becoming an iconic femme fatale. The horror film genre, which aims to evoke fear and dread, often overlaps with science fiction and film noir.123

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Louis Feuillade
Fantômas (1913–14; Master of Terror), Feuillade’s first serial, established his popularity in both France and the United States. Its swift-moving, intricate plot features a series of thrilling episodes involving clever disguises, trapdoors, kidnappings, hairbreadth escapes, and rooftop chases. It was followed by Les Vampires (1915), which centres…
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Fantômas (1913–14; Master of Terror), Feuillade’s first serial, established his popularity in both France and the United States. Its swift-moving, intricate plot features a series of thrilling episodes involving clever disguises, trapdoors, kidnappings, hairbreadth escapes, and rooftop chases. It was followed by Les Vampires (1915), which centres…
Read More

film
The serial
…most famous were Louis Feuillade’s Fantômas (1913–14) and Judex (1916) in France and the American series of the same period with Pearl White, such as The Perils of Pauline. Old serials were revived from the 1960s onward as period pieces of popular art, with their improbable plots, exaggerated acting, and…
Read More
…most famous were Louis Feuillade’s Fantômas (1913–14) and Judex (1916) in France and the American series of the same period with Pearl White, such as The Perils of Pauline. Old serials were revived from the 1960s onward as period pieces of popular art, with their improbable plots, exaggerated acting, and…
Read More