The Outside Man (1972)

After fulfilling a contract killing in Los Angeles, a French hit man becomes the target of a hit himself and tries to flee back to Paris.

Director:

Jacques Deray

Writers:

Jean-Claude Carrière (screenplay), Jacques Deray (screenplay)

Stars:

Jean-Louis Trintignant, Ann-Margret, Roy Scheider

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jean-Louis Trintignant	...	Lucien Bellon
Ann-Margret	...	Nancy Robson
Roy Scheider	...	Lenny
Angie Dickinson	...	Jackie Kovacs
Georgia Engel	...	Mrs. Barnes
Felice Orlandi	...	Anderson
Carlo De Mejo	...	Karl
Michel Constantin	...	Antoine
Umberto Orsini	...	Alex
Carmen Argenziano	...	Second Hawk
Rico Cattani	...	Butler
Ted de Corsia	...	Victor
Edward Greenberg	...	Hitchhiker
Philippa Harris	...	Salesgirl
Jackie Earle Haley	...	Eric

Storyline

French hitman Bellon (Trintignant) has been hired by mobsters to kill Victor, a rival mobster. Bellon travels to Victor's home in Los Angeles and shoots him. When Bellon tries to flee the country, he discovers that his passport and luggage have been stolen, and that another hit man named Lenny (Scheider) has been hired to kill him.

---

Plot Keywords:

pool table | campari | cigar smoking | mob | assassin | 

---

Taglines:

If you kill the most powerful man in organized crime, they've got the rest of your life to get you.

---

Genres:

Action | Crime | Drama | Thriller

---

Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

Italy France USA

Language:

French English

Release Date:

January 1973 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Outside Man

Filming Locations:

Paris Studios Cinéma, Billancourt, Hauts-de-Seine, France

Company Credits

Production Co:

Cité Films, General Production Company, Les Productions Artistes Associés

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Final film of Ted de Corsia.

---

Alternate Versions

An "X" Rated addition used for European release contains 10 additional minutes, most notably in the scene where Jean Louis Trintignant meets Ann Margret at the downtown LA nightclub. The European version contains full frontal nudity throughout the scene. This "X" rated version screened in Los Angeles at the American Cinematheque in 1998 and was mistakenly screened as the "PG" version on Showtime Networks in 2001.

---

Connections

Featured in Los Angeles Plays Itself (2003)

---

Soundtracks

Onyx Bar
Written and Performed by Michel Legrand Et Ses Rythmes

User Reviews

Film noir in Los Angeles

Being a native of Los Angeles, it's great a treat to see a overview of the city in 1973 supposedly from the plane to brings Trintignant. There are shots of "The Classic Cat", a club that no longer exists on Sunset Blvd. The chase scene filmed in Venice, CA, are also places that no longer exist as most of the development was still under construction. The music score is by Michel Legrand, whose "Umbrellas in Chernburg" is classic, here a little jarring, maybe intentional. Trintignant plays a hit man from France, who does commit cold blooded murder, so he's a bad guy. Roy Schneider, pre-Jaws, plays an even more gum chewing, sadistic killer after Trintignant.

Ann Magret, at this time, was having a difficult time having just recently lost her father in real life. She plays her part well, but it is unclear why her charactor would go out on a limb for Jean-Louis T., as his charactor treats her with sheer indifference. Angie Dickerson is a 70's babe that gives A.M. competition in the eye candy department.

The shoot out scene at the end of the movieis quite weird, the corpse in the funeral parlor displayed in a sitting position with cigar in hand and Trintigant's cohort being dragged by a hearse through the graveyard.

A 3 out of 5.