Le cercle rouge (1970)

Corey is a cool, aristocratic thief, released from prison on the same day that Vogel, a murderer, escapes from the custody of the patient Mattei, a cat-loving police superintendent. Corey ... See full summary »

Director:

Jean-Pierre Melville

Writer:

Jean-Pierre Melville

Stars:

Alain Delon, Bourvil, Gian Maria Volonté

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Alain Delon	...	Corey
Bourvil	...	Le Commissaire Mattei (as André Bourvil)
Gian Maria Volonté	...	Vogel (as Gian-Maria Volonte)
Yves Montand	...	Jansen
Paul Crauchet	...	Le Receleur
Paul Amiot	...	L'inspecteur général de la police
Pierre Collet	...	Le Gardien de prison
André Ekyan	...	Rico
Jean-Pierre Posier	...	L'assistant de Mattei
François Périer	...	Santi (as François Perier)
Yves Arcanel	...	Le juge d'instruction
René Berthier	...	Le directeur de la P.J.
Jean-Marc Boris	...	Le fils Santi
Jean Champion	...	Le garde-barrière
Yvan Chiffre	...	Un policier

Storyline

Corey is a cool, aristocratic thief, released from prison on the same day that Vogel, a murderer, escapes from the custody of the patient Mattei, a cat-loving police superintendent. Corey robs Rico, his mob boss, then enlists Vogel and an ex-police sharpshooter, Jansen, in a jewel heist. While Corey is harried by the vengeful Rico, Mattei pressures Santi, a nightclub owner and pimp, to help him trap the thieves. Over all hangs the judgment of the police directeur, that every man is guilty.

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Plot Keywords:

police | prison | nightclub owner | heist | escape | 

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Taglines:

No place to hide..Nowhere to run..

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Genres:

Crime | Thriller

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

France Italy

Language:

French

Release Date:

20 October 1970 (France)

Also Known As:

Le Cercle Rouge

Filming Locations:

Gare de Marseille-Blancarde, Marseille, Bouches-du-Rhône, France

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$14,843 (USA) (10 January 2003)

Gross:

$372,229 (USA) (12 September 2003)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Euro International Film (EIA), Les Films Corona, Selenia Cinematografica

Technical Specs

Runtime:

140 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Captain Mattei, the role played by Bourvil, was originally offered to Lino Ventura; the role of Jansen, played by Yves Montand, was originally offered to Paul Meurisse; and Jean-Paul Belmondo was originally planned to play the role of Vogel ultimately played by Gian Maria Volonté.

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Goofs

There's a cut as Commissaire Mattei turns on the lamp in his apartment. The cat beside the green chair disappears and the cat in it switches from facing sideways to facing the camera.

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Quotes

Vogel: Between shooting two men six feet away and hitting a target at 100 feet there's a certain difference. It's the difference between an amateur and a professional. And, despite all appearances, I'm not professional.

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Connections

Referenced in Il solitario (2008)

User Reviews

Don't Sleep: Melville is the Man!

Jean-Pierre Melville is one of the most slept on directors of all time. A little too old to ride the crest of the French New Wave, Melville was respected by Godard, Truffaut and the rest but never caught the attention of the international film community like those who followed him did. Melville's crime tales are directed perfectly straight forward without the hipness that permeated the French New Wave . His protagonist of choice Alain Delon had the ability to portray either cop or crook and the audience would always side with him. "The Red Circle," is one of Melville's best collaborations with Delon--not as good as "Le Samourai" (1967) but superior to "Un Flic" (1971). Nowadays cats tend to say "they don't make movies like that anymore" but "they" weren't making films like Melville during his time--over thirty years ago. Don't sleep on Melville, he's the real deal. To put it simply, Melville was and still is the man.