Frau Francisca Márquez López was known to the whole artistic world as Frau Raquel Meller; she was a Spanish cabaret singer with an international reputation and extremely popular. She also had a short career as an actress though "acting" is perhaps too strong a word for what she did on the screen.
Frau Meller's very successful singing led to her movie career, but of course, these being silent films, her voice and popular songs were of little use. Having in mind this handicap she should have tried harder performing her roles but Frau Meller's ego and star temperament led her to believe that her mere presence on the screen was enough. This was a big error and one can be checked by the newer youngster generations at any time.
Although Frau Meller started her acting career in Spain, it was in France during the 20's where she became a film star and made her most important movies (their importance comes from the efforts of the director, the other actors, the photographers, the set designers, the make-up artist and the patience of the whole crew ). "La Venenosa", a film directed by Herr Roger Lion, was the last one of her silent career.
The film depicts the story of "La Venenosa" ( Poison girl ) ( Frau Raquel Meller ) who has a terrible legend and mystery around her: some people said that she was born in India of a mother who was a snake charmer and a father who was a renegade fakir. She was bitten by a sacred snake when she was a child and for this reason she doesn't know what fear or love is and any man who tries to seduce her dies; for this reason she is known as "the poison girl".
"La Venenosa" works in a circus and during her trapeze days she will have troublesome and tormented love affairs with various men: Massetti, a sad clown ( Herr Georges Tourreil ), a lion tamer ( Herr Georges Marck ), a criminal that belongs to the Parisian Apache gang ( Herr Warwick Ward ) and an Indian prince ( Herr Sylvio De Pedrelli ) who she will finally marry. Her happiness with the prince doesn't last long; he dies in an accident on their wedding night (one of her spiteful lovers is to be blame). However, this turns out to be a blessing in disguise because now, thanks to her deceased prince's fortune, the poison girl is a rich woman and she will find true love in the arms of her Apache criminal, now an honest man and-even better-a millionaire.
The film is a perfect vehicle for Frau Meller; she only has to stand in front of the camera and do her specialty as an actress, that is to say, nothing at all. Happily she gets to wear luxurious Herr Jean Lanvin couture, a fact this that is very well advertised at the beginning of the film.
"La Venenosa", in spite of Frau Meller, is an interesting French circus film during its first part, with a peculiar and decadent atmosphere that this Herr Graf likes very much. In the trapeze scenes there is an elaborate use of the camera and the slums sequences are full of frenchified criminals and frenchified fräuleins. The film becomes less interesting when it switches to papier-mâché exoticism and luxurious décors during the last part of the oeuvre, replacing the darkness of the circus days with a light, painless and exaggerated life of comfort. On the other hand, this was perhaps a necessary change given Frau Meller's limited artistic resources and interests. The film becomes a coarse copy of any Frau Gloria Swanson film although the only similarities that Frau Meller shares with the Amerikan star is her short stature and her tall star temperament.
And now, if you'll allow me, I must temporarily take my leave because this German Count must poison a rich heiress' mind.
