Edgar de la Cambriole: Le Dictionnaire de Napoléon

Most people considered this one of the weakest of the Lupin the 3rd TV specials.

But it ain't too bad. It's directed by the same guy who did "GoodBye Lady Liberty" and "Hemmingway Papers".

In New York, Lupin steals an old fashion car which he'll use to compete in an old car race along with Jigen. The race is from Madrid to Paris. And the grand prize is Napoleon's Dictionary. Lupin wants that Dictionary because it contains the location of his family's precious heirloom.

But it won't be easy with an army of commandos hired to track him down and Zenigata like always trying to catch Lupin.

This one may not be the best one but it does have it's moments. Animation is the same as it was in the other old TV specials. It'll surly be available on DVD.

There is a big race, where racers start in Madrid and end in Paris. The prize for the winner: Napoleon's Dictionary. Why is this dictionary so valuable? Lupin believes that it has a map to his family fortune. Meanwhile, all the countries are scheming to capture Lupin because they plan on taking the Lupin family fortune, valued at 200 billion dollars.

The movie follows more Hannah Barbera logic, feeling like the Whacky Races. The animation is not very good. I was willing to cut it slack if it was the 70's, but this was 1991, same year as "Beauty and the Beast".

The race is fine, but the finish line is what makes it all feel worthless. As fulfilling as reading through a dictionary.

Napoleon's Dictionary is a pretty good early Lupin special.

Lupin is after Napoleon's Dictionary because, as you could imagine, it has information that can lead to a treasure. Lupin enters an old fashioned car race with the dictionary as the prize, and his gunslinger partner Jigen comes along for the ride. Fujiko is of course also after the treasure, and the classy samurai Goemon shows up to help his friends.

This is one of the less elaborate Lupin stories, feeling more like an extended episode of the TV series than a movie. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but it does lack the epic feel of some of the other specials.

We have some very fun stuff from Goemon, he's especially eccentric in this one. Zenigata and Lupin have some laugh out loud scenes handcuffed together, and Jigen like usual is the straight man to balk at Lupin's antics. Fujiko does have less screen time in this than I'd like though, her fun sex appeal is always a nice touch.

The plot in this one does give some brief attention to Lupin's grandfather Arsene Lupin, and father Lupin II. This is a nice touch for fans of the series.

All in all, this is your typical Lupin caper. A solid entry, but not one that stands out. It's a fun watch, with a laid back feel, jazzy music, and some hilarious comedy. Lupin fans, you may as well give this one a watch.