 "Pure Cinema: "Jouissance" and more." | 2009-08-17 |
| - Reviewed By caponsacchi |
If you came into the theater during the last five minutes of this film, you would see a 5-year-old with a toy six-shooter pretending to be an American cowboy while circling the Arc de Triomphe in a convertible driven by a cooperative chauffeur. The scene would be highly misleading--but on second thought, maybe not. There's a lot about "Rififi" that captures the first joy of watching movies at those Saturday matinees that were the highlight of every child's week.
Were it not for the humiliation and beating of a woman who had proven unfaithful to her lover (Tony, played by Jean Servais) during his prison time (he's a professional thief), we might assume this is a comic caper film. After the exhilarating, protracted safe-cracking in the middle of the film, the director sets up a mis en scene and cutting sequence identical to that in the climax of John Huston's "The Maltese Falcon," in which the thieves sit around the table salivating at the thought they are about to uncover the "real" Maltese Falcon. But this time there is no Humphrey Bogart, and the weighted sack turns out to be the real deal--priceless jewels. Even the flim's ceaselessly grim-looking protagonist, Tony, offers the barest trace of a smile.
But soon the fun comes to a screeching halt, as the house of cards falls apart one by one. The thief whose specialty is safe-cracking (played by Jules Dassin, the film's director) cracks himself when he can't resist the temptation to go back for that one extra jewel, a ring, which he then gives to a girl friend, who's the "property" of a rival gang. At this point the story becomes as "moral" as "The Maltese Falcon" (Amazon's prefatory commentary equating the tale with "nihilism" is ridiculous), exposing the self-destructive consequences of those who can't control their greed--or the childish impulses that lead make-believe cowboys to become grown-up hoodlums. It's just a matter of time before the last man standing (out of seven) expires at the moment of the film's completion (appropriate, since the last survivor, Tony, is director of the heist, just as Dassin is director of the film).
But such a summary does the film a huge injustice. "Rififi" has an ingredient lacking in the tightly-scripted, ultra-efficient, supremely-acted "Maltese Falcon": breath-taking visual composition, editing, and style that are a sheer joy to watch throughout. Moreover, it's cinematic spectacle that allows the viewer to become a participant in the "back-stage" action--the collaborative process so essential to the power of cinema itself.
Above all, it is the robbery of the jewelry shop that is analogous to filmmaking--from the collaborating it entails, to the specialties required, not to mention the hard work, the self-control and discipline, the tensions and uncertainties about the outcome, the ultimate triumph.
For the film's protagonist and director of the intricate operation, Tony, that is enough. Each of the other thieves has a grand plan for what he will do with his share of the take (which, like the profits of commercial filmmaking after the middle man's cut, is drastically diluted by the need to go through a fence specialist). But when the question is finally put to Tony, his response is: "I dunno." Then he adds, "the risk was worth it."
Of course, apart from the process itself, great movies have meaning, and "Rififi" makes its points unmistakably clear--about the roots of greed and gangsterism (and, for those familiar with the director's previous political life in America, loyalty and betrayal). The best films, moreover, are at their core an imitation of life, and "Rififi" individualizes its characters, its hoodlums, its scenes and activities with vivid verisimilitude. Even the female characters run the gamut, challenging some film stereotypes-from the victimized house wife/mother to the gang moll willing to risk her life (and pay for it) to the night club chanteuse (who plays out the rififi--i.e. rough, dangerous living--that she will soon unwittingly unleash by accepting the ring as a "fake") to the aforementioned beaten woman whose presence of mind hatches the clever ploy that will ultimately lead to the rival's location and the final shoot-out.
The cineastes, or film academics, would have you believe that in French filmmaking of the 1950s, it's the "new wave" directors who matter. But Jules Dassin makes the filmmaking of Godard's "Breathless" or of Francois Truffaut's "Shoot the Piano Player" or of Alain Resnais' "Last Year at Marienbad" all look like the work of amateurs (which it is). Not only is Dassin a more gifted, "professional" director, capable of employing light and shadow and Hollywood "classique decoupage" to perfection, but he engages the spectator more completely in the magic of cinema. Andre Bazin may not have known it, but Dassin is the most deserving French "auteur" of the period. More than any other director, he puts into play what the French philosopher, Roland Barthes, would later describe as the "juoissance" of the text.
(This DVD print has such wonderful resolution of the blacks, whites, and greys along with sharp definition of the image as to make Blu Ray gratuitous. No need to wait for a later edition, whenever that may be.) |
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| "Gangsters and Dinosaurs" | 2009-04-13 |
| - Reviewed By User: A1PZF2ZLAG4DCX |
This forerunner New Wave film shines a beam into the underworld of Paris in the early 1950's. Filmed in black and white, in clubs, streets, alleys and crummy smoke filled flats and back rooms, the viewer catches a fading glimpse of this city at the end of one era, on the brink of another.
A band of case hardened thieves and night crawlers and their weary, fish eye ring leader,played by Jean Servais,recently out of prison, conspire just one last time to knock over a very high end jewelry store in Paris.
Rififi breaks into new film territory by daring to include a long period in the movie with virtually no dialogue whatsoever as the thieves carry out their break in with painstaking detail.
Right from the beginning there is a sad foreboding and yet also a tense fascination as we watch them carry out their plan, complete with their own set of street-wise code of ethics. A sense of fatalism hovers over each character. In the end our stone cold leader, musters up a gutsy act of gallantry and love. The film's final scene of redemption adds another dimension to what would be an entirely predictable existentialist saga.
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 "Hardly a classic" | 2008-09-20 |
| - Reviewed By aberlour36 |
| If Dassen's political views had been, say, right wing, would any of the "fillum" critics pay much attention to this at times interesting, overly long, and painfully melodramatic gangster movie? If the film hadn't featured barely clothed women, would it have been praised at the time? I feel sorry for the "film studies" students who must endure this movie and write silly, politically correct essays on its "message." And if one of them dares writes "The Wages Of Sin Are Death" a failing grade is perhaps in his or her future. In short, this is tedious viewing, strictly for those wishing to appear oh-so-sophisticated. I'll take any number of Edward G. Robinson films, some made more than twenty years before this "pathbreaking" French movie. |
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 "A Rumble Among the Boys" | 2008-06-16 |
| - Reviewed By no-names |
This 1955 film was a sensation because of its unsentimental realism that differed from films of the 1940s. It begins with a gambling game. Tony from Stéphane is short of funds, and asks for help. They drive a 1940s Ford in Paris. Another man shows up with a plan to burglarize a jewelry store. But Tony is too old and slow to run fast. Tony visits a nightclub to find Mado, an old girl friend. The conversation reveals their character and relationship. Then Tony decides he needs to earn money and make a big score. A long distance telephone call takes scheduling. Mario drives a Buick. Conspicuous consumption? After meeting at the nightclub they contact a fence in London.
They take great care by studying the jewelry store for their big job. They create a key for a door. Cesar knows how to case the joint and they study the alarm. It's the latest technology, designed to go off if a wire is cut or there is any vibration. Tony gets an idea about using a fire extinguisher! A simple idea defeats high technology. The next night the job is on. Tony steals a car. Note how the French store has a concierge on the premises. The thieves go about breaking in through the ceiling. They open an umbrella indoors. Tony descends to silence the alarm. The safe is carefully tipped over to drill into the back and cut a hole to reach inside. Cesar takes a souvenir. Two gendarmes find the stolen car and call it in. There's always the unexpected. But their getaway succeeds and plan to fence the jewels in London (a comment on the financial center of the world).
Cesar disobeys his orders and hooks up with that nightclub singer. He gives her a clue. Pierre discovers this and decides to take over. Ida and Mario are captured and forced to talk, but they don't betray Tony. Now Tony is out for revenge on the Grutters. He finds Cesar and reminds him of the rules of the game. The Police Inspector watches over the funeral procession. The Grutters take steps to obtain the stolen loot. Tony will hunt the Grutters by contacting his fellow crooks. Someone tells Tony where they are. The tension builds. Then a messenger is sent to Remy and Tony follows him for a final showdown. I won't give away the ending on this old film, but justice is served, the guilty are punished.
Do parts of this film remind you of "The Asphalt Jungle"? Note how costs are kept down with a small cast and limited scenes. The long silence during the burglary reduces the costs of dubbing in another language. Tony was the first man into the store, but not the last man out. This resulted in the fatal flaw. But there could have been a squabble over the loot. There's more to go around when there are fewer shares. Or a gangster could have figured out that Tony was a jewel thief. In real life the Paris police would have rounded up all known jewel thieves and questioned them on their alibi. Why did the London fence carry a small fortune without guards? The biggest flaw in this film is the indoor alarm; they are placed outdoors and high off the ground. The presence of an innocent child adds irony to this story. |
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| "Practical manual on how to crack a bank safe" | 2008-05-25 |
| - Reviewed By timmouradian |
This is a typical French movie, which means that it lives up to the expectation that all major protagonists will die as story unfolds, with all fruits of their short cinematographic existence being lost while in the process of said dying.
This is hardly surprising as French contributed a great deal to existentialism with Jean-Paul Sartre declaring that "All human actions are equivalent and all are on principle doomed to failure" back in 1940's. How true. Of course later on Sartre developed this further with "L'enfer, c'est les autres" which is often translated as "Hell is other peoples pretentious movies", which is also very true.
"Rififi" is one of the better French movies and the single reason for that is the absolutely amazing scene of a jewelry store heist. It is quite long, shot in a documentary style and completely lacks any audio accommodations. Towards the end of it one feels as being part of the crew that just pulled it off.
I don't believe the director intended to, but the movie is quite educational in potentially penitentiary aspects - I didn't expect to learn how to crack open a bank safe when I set out watching this story, but now I feel I could do that if needed, not that I ever intent to.
A minor technical point is that audio seems to be may be 1 sec or so behind, this could be a DVD transfer issue.
Rated 4/5, as a must have classic that will be watched once and promptly forgotten afterwards.
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| "Good Suspense" | 2008-02-25 |
| - Reviewed By keehn9 |
Although this movie showed up on a lot of recommended lists, it still surprized me how good a movie it is. This is a movie that fits in with some of the best gangster movies of American Cinema in the 1940's and 50's. The characters are interesting in a compelling way although the main character starts off on the wrong foot for most audiences. There is a crime that is planned and executed in suspenseful and interesting detail. There are the real bad guys that are pretty unappealing (compared to our "good" bad guys with their humane and humorous qualities). Plots within the plot keeps us off balance and helps intensify the suspense. The ending may not be the one we'd like but it is an impressive ending nonetheless.
I've seen a number of highly rated movies that left me under-whelmed with appreciation. However, "Rififi" is a movie that I'm glad I had the opportunity to watch.
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