Tag Archives: Gian Maria Volonte

LE CERCLE ROUGE (Jean-Pierre Melville, 1970)

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‘All men are bad’ says a Judge in LE CERCLE ROUGE (Jean-Pierre Melville, 1970), ‘they’re born innocent but are quickly corrupted. In this film, two of the main ones are crooks: Corey (Alain Delon) just released from prison; Vogel (Gian Maria Volonté) recently escaped capture and on the run. The two others are cops: Inspector Mattei (André Bourvil) who’s chasing Vogel; and Jansen (Yves Montand) now an alcoholic and open to a heist. All are lonely: the inspector returning home to his cats, Corey returning from prison to find his girlfriend with an old crony and his apartment full of dust; Jansen alone battling nightmares brought on by alcoholism; Mattei, is in hiding. They get together for a heist at Boucheron on the Place Vendome, a triumph, only to be caught and shot by the Inspector and his men at the end. It’s a beautiful, fatalistic film, the mood constructed by the framing, wide, but sparsely peopled. On this viewing, what I noticed most was sound. It has no extra-diegetic music that I can detect. Most of it is heard in the nightclub scenes. There are a few moments where I’m unsure but I attribute the soft jazz to the car radio. There are entire scenes with the only sound we hear is diegetic and then singled out – brough to the fore singly — for narrative purposes: the sound of footsteps, or doors unlocking. All of this adds to the loneliness and alienation evoked by the imagery. Yet none of this adds up to futility. It’s as if each of the main characters, unafraid of death, find purpose and meaning in doing what they do best, even if it contravenes social norms and ends in the red circle we’re warned off in the opening title. Women in this film signify merely sex and betrayal. This is a marvellous disc, by Studio Canal, showcasing its first restoration, the 140 minute version beautifully shot by the great Henri Decaë, with lots of extras, including an introduction by Ginette Vincendeau.

 

On a side note, it’s surprising how little Melville appears in film noir festivals considering how he is one of the greatest directors in that particular vernacular.

José Arroyo

Eavesdropping at the Movies: 224 – Le Cercle rouge

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Listen on the players above, on Apple Podcasts, or on Spotify.

We conclude our dalliance with Jean-Pierre Melville with 1970’s Le Cercle rouge, a heist film with an impressive cast of Alain Delon, Gian Maria Volonté, and Yves Montand. We discuss how genre conventions operate in the film – the shortcuts an understanding of genre provides allow details to make the difference, Mike suggesting that it all comes out through character relationships and quirks.

In discussing Le Cercle rouge, we think back on what we’ve learned about Melville’s style, themes and interests. For Melville, emotional attachment is dangerous and makes one vulnerable; it’s a rather bleak outlook, but José argues that his films aren’t without their romantic aspects. Mike remarks upon the way in which Melville’s style has been interpreted and appropriated by the filmmakers he influenced, noting that the vivacity with which, for instance, Quentin Tarantino effuses about Melville is not reflective of Melville’s films themselves, which are slower and more pensive than you might be led to expect. To José, it’s existentialist cinema through and through, and, naturally, he loves it.

With José Arroyo of First Impressions and Michael Glass of Writing About Film.

49 – Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion

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We try out Mubi, a curated streaming service that gives you 30 films at any one time, and only 30 days in which to watch them. Our choice is Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion, a 1970s Italian satire on police corruption and the politics of power. It leads to discussions on its expressive imagery, its topsy-turvy plot, sexual kinks, peccadillos, and lifestyles, the performance of power and authority, and male jealousy and rage.

Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion is one of the best political films of all time, with a great opening sequence. A satire on politics filmed and played in high style. What does an establishment figure have to do to get arrested?

Winner of the Academy Award of Best Foreign Film in 1971 and with a great score by Ennio Morricone.

 

 

The podcast can be listened to in the player above or on iTunes.

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José Arroyo and Michael Glass of Writing About Film.