Le doulos (1962)

Director:

Jean-Pierre Melville

Writers:

Pierre Lesou (novel)
Jean-Pierre Melville (screenplay)

Release Date:

2 March 1964 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Thriller

Plot:

Burglar Maurice Faugel has just finished his sentence. He murders Gilbert Vanovre, a receiver, and steals the loot of a break-in...

Plot Keywords:

Murder | Jewel Heist | Dance Troupe | Multiple Murder | Jewelry Thief

Cast

Jean-Paul Belmondo	...	Silien
Serge Reggiani	...	Maurice Faugel
Jean Desailly	...	The Superintendant Clain
René Lefèvre	...	Gilbert Varnove (as René Lefevre)
Marcel Cuvelier	...	A police inspector
Philippe March	...	Jean (as Aimé De March)
Fabienne Dali	...	Fabienne
Monique Hennessy	...	Therese
Carl Studer	...	Kern
Christian Lude	...	The Doctor
Jacques De Leon	...	Armand
Jacques Léonard	...	A police inspector (as Jack Leonard)
Paulette Breil	...	Anita
Philippe Nahon	...	Remy
Charles Bayard	...	Old Man

Also Known As:

Doulos: The Finger Man (USA)
Lo spione (Italy)
The Finger Man

Runtime:

108 min

Country:

France | Italy

Language:

French

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Norway:16 (1963) | Germany:12 (re-rating) (2007) (uncut) | West Germany:18 (original rating) (cut) | Argentina:13 | Finland:(Banned) (1965) | Finland:K-18 (1967) | UK:12A

Company:

Compagnia Cinematografica Champion

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When Fougel frantically drives in heavy rain to Silien's home, exterior shots of the car show the rain running straight down the door and window, instead of flowing backwards with the wind.

Movie Connections:

References The Asphalt Jungle (1950)

A Great and Unheralded Film Noir

Made at pretty much the halfway point between Melville's Bob le Flambeur (1955) and Le Samourai (1967), Le Doulos contains elements of both. Belmondo plays Silien, a man thought by some to be a police informer. ("Doulos" means informer or Finger Man, which is the title in English.) Reggiani plays Maurice, who has just gotten out of prison and is getting involved with another robbery attempt. His friend Silien offers to help, and the film revolves around the tension over whether Silien is an informant or not. It's another exploration by Melville of the grey area between those who enforce the law and those who break it, of the uneasy yet powerful relationships that can develop between people on "opposite" sides of the line.

Belmondo and Reggiani are both excellent. The black and white photography by Nicholas Hayer - who also did Cocteau's Orphée and Clouzot's Le Corbeau - is superb, from the wonderfully atmospheric opening sequence (Melville may be THE master of opening sequences) to the stunning, Cocteau-like shot of a man staring into a mirror that closes the film. The plot line gets a bit complicated at times, with rival gangs, a previous jewel heist, murder, betrayals, love affairs, etc. Hard to follow. Which is to say, it's a classic example of film noir. And the jazzy soundtrack by Paul Misraki heightens the cool, noirish sensibility of the film. Whatever his failings as a director, Melville definitely knew how to create a great atmosphere.

Le Doulos is definitely worth checking out, especially by fans of film noir, Melville or Belmondo.