Pépé le Moko (1937)

Director:

Julien Duvivier

Writers:

Henri La Barthe (novel)
Henri La Barthe (scenario) ...
(more)

Release Date:

3 March 1941 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Romance

Plot:

Pépé le Moko is a gangster from Paris that hides in Algier's Casbah. In the Casbah, he is safe and is...

Plot Keywords:

Casbah | Police | Inspector | Gangster | Jealousy

Awards:

2 wins

Cast

Jean Gabin	...	Pépé le Moko
Gabriel Gabrio	...	Carlos
Saturnin Fabre	...	Le Grand Père
Fernand Charpin	...	Régis (as Charpin)
Lucas Gridoux	...	Inspecteur Slimane
Gilbert Gil	...	Pierrot (as Gilbert-Gil)
Marcel Dalio	...	L'Arbi (as Dalio)
Charles Granval	...	Maxime (as Granval)
Gaston Modot	...	Jimmy
René Bergeron	...	Inspecteur Meunier (as Bergeron)
Paul Escoffier	...	Chef Inspecteur Louvain (as Escoffier)
Roger Legris	...	Max (as Legris)
Jean Témerson	...	Gravère (as Temerson)
Robert Ozanne	...	Gendron
Philippe Richard	...	Janvier
Georges Péclet	...	Barsac (as Péclet)
Mireille Balin	...	Gaby Gould
Line Noro	...	Inès
Fréhel	...	Tania
Olga Lord	...	Aïcha
Renée Carl	...	La mère Tarte
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Franck Maurice	...	Un inspecteur (uncredited)

Directed by
Julien Duvivier

Writing credits
Henri La Barthe		(novel) (as Ashelbé)
Henri La Barthe		(scenario) (as Détective Ashelbé) &
Julien Duvivier		(scenario)
Jacques Constant		(adaptation) (as J. Constant)
Henri Jeanson		(dialogue)

Produced by
Raymond Hakim	....	producer (uncredited)
Robert Hakim	....	producer (uncredited)

Original Music by
Vincent Scotto
Mohamed Ygerbuchen		(as Mohamed Yguerbouchen)

Cinematography by
Marc Fossard
Jules Kruger		(as Kruger)

Film Editing by
Marguerite Beaugé

Production Design by
Jacques Krauss		(as Krauss)

Production Management
André Gargour	....	production manager (as A. Gargour)

Art Department
Robert Vernay	....	assistant production designer

Sound Department
Antoine Archimbaud	....	sound engineer (as A. Archimbaud)

Other crew
Mm. Hakim	....	presenter (as MM. Hakim)

Production Companies

• Paris Film

Distributors

• DisCina (1937) (France) (theatrical)
• Weltfilm-Vereinigung (1937) (Austria) (theatrical)
• Arthur Mayer & Joseph Burstyn (1941) (USA) (subtitled)
• Criterion Collection, The (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• Janus Films (????) (USA) (all media)
• Magnus Opus (2004) (Brazil) (DVD)
• Rialto Pictures (2002) (USA) (subtitled)

Other Companies

• Pathé  studios

Also Known As:

Runtime:

94 min

Country:

France

Language:

French | Arabic

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Photophone)

Certification:

Singapore:PG | USA:TV-PG (TV rating) | West Germany:12 | Australia:PG | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

Algiers, Algeria

Company:

Paris Film

Trivia:

When Walter Wanger produced Algiers (1938), the American remake, he tired to have all copies of "Pépé le Moko" destroyed. Fortunately, he was not able to do so.

Goofs:

Continuity: In a scene after Pierrot's death, Pepe is getting progressively drunker and his suit coat opens to reveal more of his shirt. His shirt has the monogram of "JG" on the pocket; clearly the monogram of the actor (Jean Gabin) and not the character.

Quotes:

Inès:[shouting to Pépé] Luck be with you, Pépé!
Gaby Gould:What an amazing fellow!
Inspecteur Slimane:Isn't he? I think it's over I'll take you back to your friends.
Gaby Gould:With pleasure, I lost my friends.
Inspecteur Slimane:They must have gone home... Isn't Pépé Le Moko amusing?
Gaby Gould:He's entering but you won't arrest him.
Inspecteur Slimane:I've written the date of his arrest on the wall where the sun shines.

Movie Connections:

Featured in La marge (1976)

"Everyone in the world has two fatherlands: his own and Paris".

"Pepe Le Moko" (1937) directed by Julien Duvivier - is a wonderful movie with the great performance from very young Jean Gabin. It just happened that I've seen several movies with him in the older age where he is serious, not very talkative man with the head full of grey hair and I like him in the later movies, too but it was so much fun to see him as Pepe - young, charming, dangerous, smart, brutal, irresistible, and so much in love with Paris that he'd lost forever. As much as I enjoyed the film as an early noir and crime, I think it is about the longing for home, about the nostalgia and as such it is even more interesting, deeper, poignant that just a noir. The celebrated film director Max Ophüls, who knew a lot about nostalgia and immigration said about Paris,

"It offered the shining wet boulevards under the street lights, breakfast in Monmartre with cognac in your glass, coffee and lukewarm brioche, gigolos and prostitutes at night. Everyone in the world has two fatherlands: his own and Paris."

I could not help thinking of his words when I watched the film. There is one scene that almost reduced me to tears - a middle-aged former chanteuse plays one of her records on a gramophone and sings along with her voice that has not changed at all even if she looks nothing like the picture on the wall from the days of her youth. The time may play very nasty jokes with a woman - she may get fat or skinny, lose her teeth and hair but her voice will stay as strong or tender, ringing or melodious as it was in the long gone days that stay forever in her memory. She sings about Paris and there are tears on her eyes and the scene simply can't leave any viewer indifferent. There is another scene - between Pepe and Gaby the girl from Paris with whom Pepe falls in love (Mireille Balin). They talk about Paris remembering different places which are dear to both of them, and in the end, they both named La Place Blanche where they both belong and not in Algiers's Casbah where Pepe is safe and he rules the world of criminals but can't forget the sound of Metro in Paris. When Pepe wants to tell Gaby that he loves her, he tells her that she reminds him of Metro in Paris...

I have not even mentioned how masterfully the film was shot by Julien Duvivier and how well it was acted, how fast it movies, and there are so many wonderful scenes that I have not mentioned...Great, great movie.