Classe tous risques

Despite kick-starting his career as a feature film director in the 1960s when the French New Wave was all the rage, Claude Sautet was never part of that movement. He got his start as an assistant director and got the gig for Classe tous risques (1960)... 

Army of Shadows

For reasons that are still unknown, Jean-Pierre Melville’s Army of Shadows (1969) was never distributed in North America. It wasn’t until April 2006 that it finally enjoyed a theatrical release on that continent. Who so long? Was it perhaps Melville’s... 

Elevator to the Gallows

After his stint working as Jacques Cousteau’s camera operator, Louis Malle tried to make an autobiographical film but found that no producers were interested in it. A friend of his had read a book called Elevator to the Gallows and suggested that it... 

Touchez pas au Grisbi

Based on Albert Simonin’s famous French crime novel of the same name, Touchez pas au Grisbi (1954) concerns the friendship between two aging gangsters, Max (Gabin) and Riton (Dary). They have been friends for a long time as is evident from the familiar...