Le Samourai: Criterion Collection
March 6, 2018
Le Samourai (1967) begins with no dialogue for several minutes as director Jean-Pierre Melville expertly conveys everything we need to know visually. He shows professional hitman Jef Costello (Delon) getting ready for a job. It is the kind of introduction...
Leon Morin, Priest: Criterion Collection
July 28, 2011
Based on Beatrix Beck’s novel Leon Morin, Priest, initially, French filmmaker Jean-Pierre Melville planned on adhering closely to the source material but ended up condensing the story to a few lines and examining a handful of characters in greater detail....
Le Doulos: Criterion Collection
November 25, 2008
Jean-Pierre Melville was known for making genre films with rambling narratives that delighted in taking all kinds of plot diversions. His seventh film, Le Doulos (1962), based on the novel by Pierre Lesou, deviated from his usual approach to produce a...
Army of Shadows
May 21, 2007
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...
Le Samourai
February 8, 2006
Le Samourai (1967) begins with no dialogue for several minutes as director Jean-Pierre Melville expertly conveys everything we need to know visually. He shows professional hitman Jef Costello (Delon) getting ready for a job. It is the kind of introduction...
