Review of Le Doulos (1962) by Art S — 29 Oct 2013

This could be my favorite Melville film. He masterfully hides things from the audience, leading us purposefully astray. The central characters are also taken in and make poor decisions as a result. The film is shot in contrasty black-and-white, not unlike some of the low-budget American noirs that Melville must have loved, but much more artful in set design, mise-en-scene, symbolism, jazzy soundtrack, than many of those.

The opening tracking shot alone is worth the price of admission. We follow Faugel (Serge Reggiani) who has just been released from prison and needs to settle old scores and get back to work. Unfortunately, his next job goes wrong because the police are tipped off by an informer (le doulos of the title).

From there, the plot cascades in a complicated fashion until all is revealed in a sudden rush with three characters sitting in a bar talking over flashbacks. But yet their fates still await them in a final coda.