Le deuxième souffle

1966 [FRENCH]

Action / Crime / Drama

12
IMDb Rating 7.9/10 10 7340 7.3K

prison sniper police brutality robbery paris, france cop-killer

Plot summary

A gangster escapes jail and quickly makes plans to continue his criminal ways elsewhere, but a determined inspector is closing in.

Director

Jean-Pierre Melville Photo
Jean-Pierre Melville

Top cast

Pierre Grasset Photo
Pierre Grasset as Pascal
Jean-Claude Bercq Photo
Jean-Claude Bercq as Inspecteur Godefroy
Raymond Pellegrin Photo
Raymond Pellegrin as Paul Ricci
Lino Ventura Photo
Lino Ventura as Gustave 'Gu' Minda
720p.WEB 1080p.WEB
1.35 GB
1204*720
French 2.0
NR
Subtitles fr  
23.976 fps
2 hr 30 min
Seeds 1
2.5 GB
1792*1072
French 2.0
NR
Subtitles fr  
23.976 fps
2 hr 30 min
Seeds 10

Movie Reviews

Reviewed by larrywest42-610-618957 9 / 10

A realistic quasi-noir crime drama

I don't speak French, but the acting and the subtitled dialog are outstanding throughout.The plot and each situation, each conversation, is completely credible, and follows naturally, yet not predictably, from what came before.A note to younger audiences: there are no highly choreographed fight scenes or stylized gun battles (though there are fights and shooting). No throw-away romantic interest. No noticeable special effects. No wisecracking. No mood music telling you what to feel.So, if you're used to recent Hollywood fare, it may seem slow.But, to this noir-lover, it feels fresh, yet as gritty as a run-down apartment in a hundred year-old building.
Reviewed by frankde-jong 8 / 10

A not very well known, but essential film in the oeuvre of Jean Pierre Mellvile

Jean Pierre Melville was an "einzelganger" in French cinema. He did not belong to the Nouvelle vague (although his career took place during the heydays of this movement), but he certainly wasn't a part of the "cinema du papa" (as the nouvelle vague directors derogatory described their predecessors) either. "Le deuxieme souffle" is not the most well known picture from the oeuvre of Melville, but it is a connecting link between the pure film noir of "Bob le flambeur" (1956) and the more abstract (but still film noir) films such as "Le samourai" (1967) and "Le cercle rouge" (1970). "Le deuxieme souffle" is not noticeable because of an innovative plot. The criminal who comes out of prison and wants to set some things straight and also wants to make one major robbery before he retires, we all have seen it a dozen times before. It is the way Melville tells this story.One element you can't miss is the way each milieu has it's own code of honor. Gustave Minda (Lino Ventura) is a criminal who doesn't hesitate for a second when the job requires that he has to kill a couple of people ("Le deuxieme souffle" is a very raw film), but he is very anxious not to be known as a talebearer by his "colleagues". On the other hand commissaire Blot (Paul Meurisse) has to deal with very ruthless people, and in a way he understands them and sees through them. When however another commissair uses violent interrogation techniques, he takes measures to keep his profession clean.Just like in "Le samourai" the opening scene is silent for a very long time. In this opening scene we see the escape of Gustave Minda and two other inmates. The way that Gustave has to struggle to keep pace with his fellow inmates tells us (without the use of a single word) that he is already an aging criminal.Just like in "Du rififi chez les hommes" (1955, Jules Dassin) the preparations for the great robbery are shown in great detail. During this preparations Gustave has to hide, after all he is a prisoner on the run. Much of the movie is therefore situated in cramped claustrophobic rooms. To juxtapose all this, the execution of the crime is situated in the most open of landscapes imaginable.
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