Le Samouraï (1967)
Dir. Jean-Pierre Melville
Genre: Neo-Noir Crime Thriller
Here we have a masterpiece in minimalist movie making by a great foreign director of his time. Shot on location we have a few key locations for the film, the club, the apartment, the alibi, the police station, the garage & train station. I just love these types of movies from that era, and when it comes to foreign films they surely know how to make them with a different attitude, stylish and unique. I love the fact that it's a very quiet film with very sparse dialogue, although the police inspector has the most to say in contrast to Jef Costello, who has very little to say, and a certain Tarantino can learn from this, you don't need an overload of dialogue to make good storytelling, cut the bull$hit and use the core to hit hard and be memorable instead. There's also lots of little interesting details to take note of while watching, and no time is wasted anywhere for the scenes.
I wish this was done during the black & white era, but the colour palette is more subdued here anyhow. Again, here is a film with low-key action, even when it is based on a hit man, Jef Costello who conducts himself with Samurai instincts. He's a loner (Samurai analogy) who lives in a sparse rundown apartment with a bird in a cage as his lookout. His latest contracted hit doesn't go as flawless as expected, and he is detained by the police as a suspect, according to a witness who saw him leave the scene of the crime. The relentless police inspector who puts all of Paris' police force on the case, just about, is convinced it is Jef Costello, he just needs to prove it.
Meanwhile, with the police inspector hot on his heels, Jef Costello is trying to find out who contracted him for the hit, as they are also trying to eliminate him now, due to the police detaining him, leaving them vulnerable. It turns into a cat & mouse game between Jef Costello, the police inspector and the contractor, while still being offered a new contract to take out the witness, where it all eventually plays out at the conclusion.
It is truly a spellbinding film and part of my favourites list, and director Jean-Pierre Melville has many more great films of this caliber in his filmography.
There's just something different when it comes to watching any foreign film... it must be the language.
Great film and I give it a 9.5 rating.
