(aka "Doulos: The Finger Man" or "The Finger Man" or "Lo Spione")
directed
by Jean-Pierre Melville
France 1961
Burglar Maurice Faugel has just finished his sentence. He murders Gilbert Vanovre, a receiver, and steals the loot of a break-in. He is also preparing a house-breaking, and his friend Silien brings him the needed equipment. But Silien is a police informer ... A movie whose "all characters are two-faced, all characters are false", according to director Jean-Pierre Melville.
Jean-Pierre Melville's existentialized gangster films are one of the glories of the French cinema, American forms played out with European self-consciousness. This 1962 effort stars Jean-Paul Belmondo as an informer on the lam, but plot pales before Melville's detailed noir imagery of dingy hotel rooms, back alleys, and subterranean passages. Melville's love for American films (he was a man of taste as well as talent) was one of the most profound influences on the New Wave generation.
Excerpt from Dave Kehr's capsule on the Chicago Reader located HERE
Posters
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Theatrical Release: March - 1961 - France
Reviews More Reviews DVD Reviews
DVD Review: BFI - Region 2 - PAL
| DVD Box Cover |
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CLICK to order from:
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| Distribution | BFI - Region 2- PAL | |
| Runtime | 1:44:20 | |
| Video |
1.66:1 Original Aspect Ratio
16X9 enhanced |
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| Bitrate:
NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes. |
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| Audio | French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Dolby) | |
| Subtitles | English (non-removable) - They keep returning ! | |
| Features |
Release Information:
Edition Details:
• Commentary by French
film expert Prof. Ginette Vincendeau |
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| Comments: |
There is
a bit of softness in the image, but certainly less than one might expect
for a 40 year old film. I see some good film grain, the audio was clear
if unpronounced, excellent subtitles and the Extras are very complete.
BFI has done another competent job in bringing this Melville classic to
DVD. Bravo!
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out of
Recommended Reading in French Cinema (CLICK COVERS or TITLES for more information)
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The Films in My Life |
French Cinema: A Student's Guide by Philip Powrie, Keith Reader |
Agnes Varda by Alison Smith | Godard on Godard : Critical Writings by Jean-Luc Godard | Notes on the Cinematographer by Robert Bresson |
Robert Bresson (Cinematheque Ontario Monographs, No.
2) by James Quandt |
The Art of Cinema by Jean Cocteau |
French New Wave
by Jean Douchet, Robert Bonnono, Cedric Anger, Robert Bononno |
French Cinema: From Its Beginnings to the Present by Remi Fournier Lanzoni |
Truffaut: A Biography by Antoine do Baecque and Serge Toubiana |
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