finally! - #150 - for this one we have a French heist film that has shades of what will become the French New Wave. A bit of humor and energy to this one. Bob (the Gambler, for translation's sake) is just what he says - a man who lives by chance and a two headed coin. He gets an idea when down on his luck for a heist, and well, the story will have to tell itself.
This one is OOP in Criterion but I found it in Kanopy. It had a nice vibe and flow, with lots of outside Paris shots which I always adore.
Our standout here is Isabelle Corey, who plays the young female interest that helps move a bit of the plot along. This is her first film, and we'll see here in "And God Created Woman and then show up in a number of Italian films. She sort of owns every scene she's in, and really seems like someone added just to have one beautiful young woman, but hey, sometimes that's what we need.
The film seems to have a touch of influence from American Gangster films. Not Noir, but definitely we have a gangster element as Bob used to be a heist guy but has a code that makes him hate pimps, which gives him that element of likability and makes us root from him.
This is also our first exposure to the director, Jean Pierre Melville. He has done some films I've been eager to see, and look forward to seeing him again. As stated, he does have an influence on the French New Wave scene to follow and I'm looking forward to further updates from this director
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