| L'Alpagueur | |
|---|---|
Theatrical release poster |
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| Directed by | Philippe Labro |
| Written by | Philippe Labro |
| Starring | Jean-Paul Belmondo, Bruno Cremer |
| Music by | Michel Colombier |
| Distributed by | Cerito film |
| Release date(s) | March 25, 1976 |
| Running time | 110 min. |
| Language | French |
L'Alpagueur is a film adaptation of the original scenario from Philippe Labro directed by him and featuring Jean-Paul Belmondo in the title role and Bruno Cremer as L'Epervier.
Released in 1976 and considered as a typical French thriller from the 70's, it is one of many Belmondo's movie where he is playing the title role. Like in Le Magnifique, L'Incorrigible or Le Marginal, Belmondo is the real star of the show, playing a solitary character and pursuing bad guys. The score from Michel Colombier is typical from this period, mixing piano, modern rhythms and brass instruments. The film was the 19th highest earning film of the year in France with 1,533,183 admissions. [1]
Contents |
As one of the character is saying at the beginning of the movie:
L'alpagueur c'est un chasseur de tête, c'est un mercenaire, un marginal. L'alpagueur c'est l'astuce qu'a trouvé un haut fonctionnaire pour passer au-dessus de la routine policière.
The alpagueur is a head hunter, a mercenary, a marginal. The alpagueur is a trick made up by a state employee to be above the cop's routine.
Originally a deer hunter, l'Alpagueur became a head hunter working for the police, paid by them with money stolen from criminals. The main plot revolves around l'Alpagueur's pursuit of l'Épervier, (sparrowhawk) a bank robber and an assassin, who kills whoever sees him commit a crime. His technique is to pay a young and naive man to be his accomplice and kill him right after. One of his accomplices, Costa Valdez, is only wounded during one of his hold ups, and with his help, l'Alpagueur manages to find l'Épervier at the end.