A Cat in Paris (Une Vie de Chat), or: The freedoms and burdens that come with animation

A Cat in Paris (Une Vie de Chat) (2010) Directed by Jean-Loup Felicioli and Alain Gagnol ***SPOILERS*** Until form in film ceases to exist, ...

Le Cercle Rouge, or: How a masterful heist surrounds itself with stale characters

Le Cercle Rouge (The Red Circle) (1970) Directed by Jean-Pierre Melville ***SPOILERS*** Jean-Pierre Melville begins  Le Cercle Rouge  with a...

Army of Shadows, or: The deathly tone of silence

Army of Shadows (L'armée des ombres) (1969) Directed by Jean-Pierre Melville ***SPOILERS*** Silence is golden—that’s what the English po...

Le Samouraï, or: Dissolution, ethics and mortality

Le Samouraï (The Godson) (1967) Directed by Jean-Pierre Melville ***SPOILERS*** “I never talk to a man holding a gun,” Jef says with a blank...

Le Doulos, or: The cruel, labyrinthine inner circle of crime

Le Doulos (The Finger Man) (1962) Directed by Jean-Pierre Melville ***SPOILERS*** From the very get-go of  Le Doulos , Jean-Pierre Melville ...

Bob le Flambeur, or: Jean Pierre-Melville's loving ode to Paris and film

Bob le Flambeur (Bob the Gambler) (1956) Directed by Jean-Pierre Melville ***SPOILERS*** From  Le Doulos   to  Le Cercle Rouge , Jean-Pierre...