Enigmatic gangster Silien may or may not be responsible for informing on Faugel, who was just released from prison and is already involved in what should be a simple heist. By the end of this brutal, twisting, and multilayered policier, who will be left to trust?
The Finger Man, Дулосът, 밀고자, The informant, Lo spione, Der Teufel mit der weißen Weste, Стукач, El confidente, Az áruló, Práskač, לאון מורן, כומר, Szpicel, 眼线, Ställd mot väggen, Доносник, Udavač, کلاه, いぬ, Técnica de Um Delator, Ο Χαφιές, Kovaa peliä Pariisissa
Argentina
Mar del Plata Film Festival
GreeceK12
Panorama of European Cinema
Italy
Italy
Italy
Netherlands
Spain
USA
China
Italy
France
Germany12
Sweden
Argentina
Japan
Denmark
USANR
UK12A
Netherlands
Mexico
Uruguay
Finland
Italy
Brazil
France
Poland
Argentina
Brazil
China
Denmark
Finland
France
Germany
Greece
Italy
Japan
Mexico
Netherlands
Poland
Spain
Sweden
UK
USA
Uruguay
Jean-Paul Belmond is the definition of fancy with a cigarette on his hand, drinking whisky and wearing a black smoking🚬🥃🕵🏻
Action! – Three Auteurs: In The Wavelength of Melville
So, this was a long time coming, but we finally got there. The birth of the Melville we have all come to know and many (not Dan) love.
The cinematography is even more stunning, which I thought couldn’t be possible, but here we are. The tracking shots and long takes are often mesmerizing. Everyone delivers not only great performance but such a swag (namely Belmondo) that makes you love these crooks and cops so much more. Those are personality goals right there. The story, which went on to influence Tarantino’s Reservoir Dogs, is interesting, simple, yet elevated, not only by the craft on display but also by the great performances that…
Le Doulos mixes mixes noir influences with New Wave stylings for an intoxicating tale of dishonour and duplicity in the French underworld. A taut opening scene leads to a heist gone wrong, with Jean-Paul Belmondo's mysterious interloper seemingly at the centre of it all. Jean-Pierre Melville really brings this story to life with some beautifully orchestrated scenes; set off against some brilliantly slick camera work and use of shadow. There are several scenes in cars that have a real surreal edge to them. The complex plot is well told. It ebbs and flows with a real pulsating tension always just beneath the surface. The narrative features numerous double crosses and plot twists in the classic crime thriller style, with always…
"You have to choose… to die, or to lie?"
You either die an [honest] villain or live long enough to see yourself become the [dishonest] hero.
Exceptionally exciting and thoroughly thrilling gangster mystery at its best in the way it navigates having two protagonists without weighing one of them more heavily than the other, both emotionally and narratively (so crucial in a story about betrayal—we never feel we know who "le doulos" is until the end). Perhaps Melville's central text on brotherhood. At its worst in the way it keeps the audience in the dark as long as possible about the machinations of the plot, but the characters are so strong that it never feels contrived. I can't believe this is only my fourth favorite Melville at the moment; that man knew how to direct some great movies.
Some belabored plot mechanics aside, this is probably a good dark horse contender for Melville's best movie. The third-act twist isn't really a twist at all, but simply a way for the characters' tragedies to stand out in greater relief.
This film has every ingredient of a razor-sharp noir – a convoluted plot, shifty characters, and postwar dubiety all fusing to produce a world built almost entirely out of backstabbing and betrayal.
There’s a bottomless richness to Nicolas Hayer’s cinematography, his blacks grainy and inky, the light delicately bouncing off the dark and the fog elegantly streaking across the screen.
One other interesting point about the flim: Les doulos is Tarantino’s favorite storyline and Scorsese’s favorite gangster film. Quite an impressive influence, eh?
I’m fairly well-versed in following noir down its various convoluted rabbit-holes (save for The Big Sleep, which never makes any sense even with the help of Google), but admittedly, I lost my way more than once on this one, and whether that’s down to me or Melville’s trigger-finger style — I don’t know. Either way, I’m not about to blame this gem for being smarter than me. Compared to Melville’s more celebrated later works Army of Shadows and Le Cercle Rouge, Le Doulos is a typically energised mid-career entry, with none of the trademark stasis that comprises the aforementioned works. This blast of visual bravura, complete with jazzy riffs and majestic long-takes, is not only utterly thrilling, but dare I say the coolest, most cynical French caper I’ve ever had the pleasure of sitting down with. If that doesn’t cut it, Belmondo has never been better. Up there with Miller’s Crossing as one of the greatest hat-movies ever made.
My first time with Melville, and I'm already in love? I'm a sucker for sleek, black-and-white gangster flicks, and Le Doulos is easily one of the coolest blueprints of the genre. It's the paradigm of the concept of cool—coolness and suavity pervade every scene. The stylized nature of this is unbelievably strong. Even some of the more conventional scenes were just as good. There's an especially tense, paranoia-filled scene near the start that is almost as exciting as typical thrillers. Nicolas Hayer's crisp cinematography and the ingenious use of shadows enhance the film in a lot of ways.
Plot-wise, a little too convoluted for my feeble brain to keep up with at times. But when you have Jean-Paul Belmondo on screen, it's no worries. Somehow manages to never lose its cool for its entirety. I have yet to see Le Samouraï, but after watching this, it's my top priority.
"Who were you calling?"
"The cemetery, to book you a place in case you need it."
Women Film Editors #103: Monique Bonnot
I'm not saying anything that hasn't already been noted by many better writers infinite times over, but sometimes I need a reminder: it's staggering to reflect on the range that Jean-Paul Belmondo possessed as an actor. He could easily embody absolute sweethearts so charming in their colorful buffoonery, more subtle and nuanced roles in serious-minded period pieces, blasé hoodlums... and yet in Melville's Le Doulos, JPB is a real ice-cold bastard, a slick operator with no qualms about killing anyone who stands in the way of a multi-million loot from a jewel robbery. French gangster flicks are often…
Melville playing with an intricate plot, plot twists, Belmondo's physiognomy, the two sides of the coin in every man's personality, and Fabbiene's body. Greatly constructed noir, satisfactory in every aspect.
97/100
