I Always Wanted to Be a Gangster (2007)

Told in four vignettes, this existential comedy relates the exploits of four aspiring criminals who hope to improve their lot, but find that they might not have what it takes for a life of crime.

Director:

Samuel Benchetrit

Writer:

Samuel Benchetrit

Stars:

Anna Mouglalis, Edouard Baer, Jean Rochefort

3 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview:
Anna Mouglalis	...	Suzy - la serveuse
Edouard Baer	...	Gino - le braqueur
Jean Rochefort	...	Jean
Laurent Terzieff	...	Émile
Jean-Pierre Kalfon	...	Max
Venantino Venantini	...	Joe
Roger Dumas	...	Pierrot la Pince
Alain Bashung	...	Alain Bashung
Arno	...	Arno
Bouli Lanners	...	Léon
Serge Larivière	...	Paul dit Paulo
Selma El Mouissi	...	Malaury Stone
Gérald Laroche	...	Le patron
Gábor Rassov	...	Le cuisinier

Storyline

This is just another roadside cafeteria. Gino, who enters it discreetly, is an armed robber ... without an arm! He tries to hold up the place but fails pitifully: the pretty waitress won't allow! Two amateur kidnappers take a rich teenage girl hostage and want to exchange her for ransom. But their victim is not easy to deal with. Two singers meet in the cafeteria by chance and talk about a stolen song and a stolen woman. Five seventy-year-old retired robbers also meet at the cafeteria - where their hideout used to be - and work out a last caper. In the end, after having tried to steal from each other, go away together.

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Plot Keywords:

waitress | singer | suburb | neo noir | absurdism | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Crime | Drama

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Did You Know?

Trivia

Sergi López had been hired to play Gino but he broke his leg and was replaced by Edouard Baer.

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Connections

References Goodfellas (1990)

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Soundtracks

12th street Rag
Performed by Vanilla Fudge

User Reviews

Has its moments

This was the first movie we saw at Sundance this year, and we really did enjoy it. It's not a laugh riot from beginning to end, but its gentle humor amused us, and we were interested enough in the characters to care about the story. This was actually 4 vignettes tied together by a common location. We actually were disappointed that some of the stories were left hanging, so to speak, and we were left to wonder about their characters. Another picky-picky complaint (and perhaps this was just our theater), was that the subtitles got lost in the white counter tops at the bottom of the screen. They were very difficult to read at times. Perhaps a different color font should have been used.

Details

Country:

France

Language:

French

Release Date:

26 March 2008 (France)

Also Known As:

I Always Wanted to Be a Gangster

Filming Locations:

Parking du Centre Commercial Villebon 2, Avenue de la Plesse RD59, Villebon-sur-Yvette, Essonne, France

Box Office

Budget:

EUR2,800,000 (estimated)

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$2,513,168

Company Credits

Production Co:

Fidélité Productions, Virtual Films, Wild Bunch

Technical Specs

Runtime:

113 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1