The Crab with the Golden Claws (1947)

Written by Paulo Cambraia on May 30, 2012

The Crab with the Golden Claws is a 1947 Belgian stop motion feature film produced by Wilfried Bouchery for Films Claude Misonne. It is based on the comic book Le Crabe Aux Pinces D'Or by Hergé, first published in serial comic strip form in 1941. This was the first Tintin story to be adapted into a movie and, as per Hergé's request, it follows the story of the comic book very closely. It also is the first Belgium animated feature film.

Allegedly, there was a screening in Brussels at the ABC Cinema on 11 January 1947 for a group of special invited guests. This would not have been a public screening, therefore, it does not count as the "moment of birth" of the movie, but rather as an on-going production screening [1].

It was shown in public for the first time on the 21st of December 1947 at the ABC Cinema, Place Sainctelette, Brussels. Although programmed until the 11th of January 1948, given the fraudulent bankrupcy of the producer, Wilfried Bouchery, the film and all of the equipment was seized the next day. Wilfried fled to Argentina. Until the Summer of 48 he still tried other ways to commercialize the movie, but never found a distributor for it. After that the film disapeared, only to be found out again in Brussels in the 1980's, in the Musée du Cinéma.

The original 35mm film was restored by the Cinémathèque Royale de Belgique. The restored copy was screened the 22nd of July 2005 at Bozar (an arts centre in Brussels) as part of "Le Marathon du Cinéma" for the Tintin Festival.

The 14th of May 2008, the film was released on PAL DVD in France by Fox Pathé Europa.

[1] As per Philpee Goddin in his book, one month before the public release of the movie, Hergé refused to prolong the producer's contract without having seen the film and judged its quality and effectiveness. In other words, in November 1947 the movie was not yet approved by Hergé. No-way that January 1947 may be the date-of-birth of the movie.

References:

http://www.tintinologist.org/guides/screen/crab1947.html

http://tintinpirates.free.fr/Crabe.htm

http://tintinophile.xooit.fr/t58-Film-Le-Crabe-aux-pinces-d-or-1947.htm?start=15

http://www.tintinologist.org/forums/index.php?action=vthread&forum=9&topic=1045

http://www.animationeurope.com/filmlist.asp

Philppe Goddin’s book "Hergé - Chronologie d'une oeuvre", vol 5.

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