Jean-Pierre Melville
1917 - 1973Melville's subject matter and approach to filmmaking was heavily influenced by his service in the French Resistance during World War II, during which he adopted the pseudonym 'Melville' as a tribute to his favorite American author Herman Melville. He kept it as his stage name once the war was over.
His sparse, existentialist but stylish approach to film noir and later neo-noir films, many of them in the crime dramas, have been highly influential to future generations of filmmakers. Roger Ebert appraised him as "one of the greatest directors."
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Army of Shadows
Jean-Pierre Melville
Lino Ventura, Paul Meurisse
Betrayed by an informant, Philippe Gerbier finds himself trapped in a torturous Nazi prison camp. Though Gerbier escapes to rejoin the Resistance in occupied Marseilles, France, and exacts his revenge on the informant, he must continue a quiet, seemingly endless battle against the Nazis in an atmosphere of tension, paranoia and distrust.
Army of Shadows
Le Samouraï
Jean-Pierre Melville
Alain Delon, François Périer
After carrying out a flawlessly planned hit, Jef Costello, a contract killer with samurai instincts, finds himself caught between a persistent police investigator and a ruthless employer, and not even his armor of fedora and trench coat can protect him.
Le Samouraï
Le Cercle Rouge
Jean-Pierre Melville
Alain Delon, Bourvil
When French criminal Corey gets released from prison, he resolves to never return. He is quickly pulled back into the underworld, however, after a chance encounter with escaped murderer Vogel. Along with former policeman and current alcoholic Jansen, they plot an intricate jewel heist. All the while, quirky Police Commissioner Mattei, who was the one to lose custody of Vogel, is determined to find him.
Le Cercle Rouge
Le Doulos
Jean-Pierre Melville
Jean-Paul Belmondo, Serge Reggiani
Enigmatic gangster Silien may or may not be responsible for informing on Faugel, who was just released from prison and is already involved in what should be a simple heist. By the end of this brutal, twisting, and multilayered policier, who will be left to trust?
Le Doulos
Bob le flambeur
Jean-Pierre Melville
Roger Duchesne, Isabelle Corey
In Paris, Bob Montagne is practically synonymous with gambling -- and winning. He is kind, classy and well-liked by virtually everyone in town, including police inspector Ledru. However, when Bob's luck turns sour, he begins to lose friends and makes the most desperate gamble of his life: to rob the Deauville casino during Grand Prix weekend, when the vaults are full. Unfortunately, Bob soon learns that the game is rigged and the cops are on to him.
Bob le Flambeur
Le Silence de la mer
Jean-Pierre Melville
Howard Vernon, Nicole Stéphane
In a small town in occupied France in 1941, the German officer, Werner Von Ebrennac is billeted in the house of the uncle and his niece. The uncle and niece refuse to speak to him, but each evening the officer warms himself by the fire and talks of his country, his music, and his idealistic views of the relationship between France and Germany. That is, until he visits Paris and discovers what is really going on...
The Silence of the Sea
Code Name: Melville
Olivier Bohler
Michel Dreyfus-Schmidt, Leo Fortel
Mixing interviews, rare archival footage and film extracts, the film shows how Melville's works were impacted by what he experienced in his youth during WWII, and how it structured his whole approach to cinema, not only in its thematic but also in its aesthetics.
Code Name: Melville
Léon Morin, Priest
Jean-Pierre Melville
Jean-Paul Belmondo, Emmanuelle Riva
The widow Barny lives in Nazi-occupied France, looking after her half-Jewish daughter in a small village. When the Germans arrive, she decides to baptize her and chooses priest Léon Morin to do so. After spending some time with him, the relationship with her confessor turns into a confrontation with both God and her own repressed desire.
Léon Morin, Priest
Melville, le dernier samouraï
Cyril Leuthy
Laurent Grousset, Rémy Grumbach
Like nobody else Jean-Pierre Melville influenced modern filmmaking. This documentary follows his creative process step by step, showing him becoming the father of the Nouvelle Vague and one of the most iconic directors of French cinema.
Melville, le dernier samouraï
Jean-Pierre Melville: portrait en neuf poses
André S. Labarthe
Jean-Pierre Melville
Shot while he was preparing Un Flic, Melville carefully leads Labarthe through the trajectory of his career, from his daring debut The Silence of the Sea to his great successes of the 1960s, Le Samourai and Le cercle rouge. Labarthe also details the development of the Melville “myth: the dark glasses, the trenchcoats, the Ford Mustang, and his general tough-guy demeanor. This documentary first appeared as an episode on the French television series "Cinéastes de notres temps".
Jean-Pierre Melville: Portrait in 9 Poses
