Le Cercle rouge
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| Le Cercle rouge | |
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 Le Cercle rouge Criterion Collection DVD cover |
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| Directed by | Jean-Pierre Melville |
| Produced by | Robert Dorfmann |
| Written by | Jean-Pierre Melville |
| Starring | Alain Delon Bourvil Yves Montand Gian Maria Volonté |
| Distributed by | The Criterion Collection Rialto Pictures StudioCanal |
| Release date(s) | 1970 |
| Running time | 140 min. |
| Language | French |
| All Movie Guide profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
Le Cercle rouge is a 1970 crime film set in Paris, France. It was directed by Jean-Pierre Melville and starred Alain Delon, Bourvil, Gian Maria Volonté and Yves Montand. It is perhaps best known for its final heist sequence which is about half an hour in length.
The film's title means "The Red Circle" and refers to the film's epigraph which translates as
- "Siddhartha Gautama, the Buddha, drew a circle with a piece of red chalk and said: 'When men, even unknowingly, are to meet one day, whatever may befall each, whatever the diverging paths, on the said day, they will inevitably come together in the red circle.'"
In fact, the Buddha said no such thing; Melville made it up,[1] just as he did with the epigraph in his film Le Samouraï.
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[edit] Plot
Corey (Delon) is a cool, aristocratic thief, released from prison on the same day that Vogel (Volonté), a murderer, escapes from the custody of the patient Mattei (Bourvil), a cat-loving police superintendent. Corey robs Rico, his mob boss, then enlists Vogel and an ex-police sharpshooter, Jansen (Montand), in a jewel heist. While Corey is harried by the vengeful Rico, Mattei pressures Santi, a nightclub owner and pimp, to help him trap the thieves. Over all hangs the judgment of the police directeur, that every man is guilty.
[edit] Cast
- Alain Delon - Corey
- Bourvil - Le Commissaire Mattei
- Gian Maria Volontè - Vogel
- Yves Montand - Jansen
- Paul Crauchet - Le Receleur
- Paul Amiot - Le chef de la police
- Pierre Collet - Le Gardien de prison
- André Ekyan - Rico
- Jean-Pierre Posier - L'assistant de Mattei
- François Périer - Santi (as François Perier)
- Yves Arcanel - Le juge d'instruction
- René Berthier - Le directeur de la P.J.
- Jean-Marc Boris - Le fils Santi (Santi's son)
- Jean Champion - Le garde-barrière
- Yvan Chiffre - Un policier (a policeman)
- Anna Douking - L'ancienne amie de Corey (as Ana Douking)
- Robert Favart - Le vendeur chez Mauboussin
- Roger Fradet - Un policier (a policeman)
- Édouard Francomme - Le gardien du billard (as Edouard Francomme)
- Jean Franval - Le tenancier d'hôtel
- Jacques Galland - Le chef de train
- Jean-Pierre Janic - Paul, l'homme de Rico
- Pierre Lecomte - L'adjoint de l'I.G.S.
- Jacques Léonard - Un policier (a policeman)
- Jacques Leroy - Un policier (a policeman)
- Jean Pignol - L'employé du greffe
- Robert Rondo - Un policier (a policeman)
[edit] Remake
John Woo has stated that he wants to direct a remake of Le Cercle rouge and call it The Red Circle.[2] Woo wrote an essay for the Criterion DVD of Le Cercle rouge arguing the film's merits.
[edit] External links
- Le Cercle rouge at the Internet Movie Database
- Criterion Collection essay by Michael Sragow
- Criterion Collection essay by Chris Fujiwara
| Jean-Pierre Melville |
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Vingt-quatre heures de la vie d'un clown • Le Silence de la mer • Les Enfants terribles • Bob le flambeur • Deux hommes dans Manhattan • Léon Morin, prêtre • Le Doulos • L’Aîné des Ferchaux • Le Deuxième souffle • Le Samouraï • Army of Shadows • Le Cercle rouge • Un flic • |
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