Scoumoune (1972)
"La scoumoune" (original title)

Episodic portrait of a criminal, from 1934 until after the war. Roberto Borgo is tough, cool, sardonic, loyal, and deadly. He comes to Marseilles to help his friend Xavier Saratov get out ... See full summary »

Director:

José Giovanni

Writers:

José Giovanni (novel), José Giovanni (screenplay)

Stars:

Jean-Paul Belmondo, Claudia Cardinale, Michel Constantin

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jean-Paul Belmondo	...	Roberto Borgo
Claudia Cardinale	...	Georgia Saratov
Michel Constantin	...	Xavier Saratov
Enrique Lucero	...	Le Mexicain / Migli
Alain Mottet	...	Ficelle
Michel Peyrelon	...	L'élégant
Philippe Brizard	...	Fanfan
Marie-Claude Mestral	...	Une prostituée
Aldo Bufi Landi	...	Jeannot Villanova
Luciano Catenacci	...	(as Luciano Lorcas)
Lucie Arnold	...	La chanteuse (as Luci Arnold)
Albert Augier
Bruno Balp	...	L'inspecteur à la morgue
Paul Beauvais
Gabriel Briand	...	Un bagnard

Storyline

Episodic portrait of a criminal, from 1934 until after the war. Roberto Borgo is tough, cool, sardonic, loyal, and deadly. He comes to Marseilles to help his friend Xavier Saratov get out of jail, first killing a local brothel and casino boss to take over the businesses, and, with the help of Xavier's sister, Georgia, amass money for Xavier's defense. Xavier loses in court, so Roberto gets himself thrown in prison to be with his friend. Escape proves futile, but they are pardoned in exchange for working as sappers. After the war, Xavier is a bitter cripple, but Roberto remains detached, extorting ownership of a casino, which puts his friends at risk. Does he care?

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Plot Keywords:

remake | police | based on novel

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Genres:

Crime | Drama

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Details

Country:

France Italy

Language:

French

Release Date:

1974 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Pariah

Company Credits

Production Co:

Lira Films, Praesidens

Technical Specs

Runtime:

101 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Did You Know?

Trivia

16th highest grossing movie of its year in France.

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Goofs

During the riot - because of the rotten food - in jail, Fanfan sits at the right of Xavier Saratov. He is not supposed to be here yet, since Borgo will welcome him few scenes later.

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Connections

Remake of A Man Named Rocca (1961)

User Reviews

Episodic gangster melodrama that works! 9 out of 10!

I never read the book that this movie is based on, but I suspect it contains the plot details which the movie just supplies on a whim, if at all. As a matter of fact, the movie just feels like a compilation of the book's every second chapter's climax. You'd might think this skipstone structure a major flaw, but strangely enough, you'd be wrong. This flick is a delight --the rap-atap cadence of perfunctory set-ups and upsets thrilled me to the bone. Of all of Belmondo's French gangster pictures, this is the one he should be remembered for.