MovieChat Forums > Touchez pas au grisbi Discussion > great movie with Gabin and Becker

great movie with Gabin and Becker

posted 18 years ago by Renard-4
14 replies | jump to latest

I read mostly bad review for this film, which I tought was great.
Jean Gabin is great in it, only his walk seems a bit forced. reminded me a bit like a cowboy especially when he's walking out of his rich girlfriend's room.
He is a great actor, I admire and appreciate his work. It is probably also a likable character that he played in this one.

is it him or Becker that makes it a great movie?

Becker wrote a great script, and brought some modern shots and looks to it.

Salut
my growing DVD collection
http://www.intervocative.com/DVDCollection.aspx/chauffard

[–] FridaKForeva 18 years ago

I would say both Gabin and Becker together created a great film. I personally love this film and I think it is the best of the whole french gangster/heist type movie (although I love Rififi, Bob Le Flambeur......). I have seen Gabin in other movies and he definatly does the tough gangster thing very well. He's the French Bogie! And I have seen other Becker films which I LOVE (esp Casque D'or).

What I like about this movie in terms of Gabin is that for me its almost a continuation from his previous gangster roles. We get to see what happens when a gangster gets old. He is so sweet with the Riton character- providing him with a tooth brush and pajamas!

[–] mastercard 18 years ago

I think Gabin did a beautiful job of portraying a man who must put up a constant
veneer of toughness by showing us that the front is just a front, and being able to
convey this without being verbal about it. Of course he cared about money. But
was it his primary concern? Certainly not, but all his acquaintances thought so.

I do not think, therefore I am a mustache.

[–] TheKGun 16 years ago

Riton= Porcupine head!!

[–] Jastrzebiec 18 years ago

It took both, plus Lino Ventura and Jeanne Moreau. IMHO the four classic French policiers from the Fifties are:

Touchez pas au grisbi
Bob le flambeur
Rififi
Classe tous risques

It's hard to say which is best, although "Bob" has the best ending. Classe tous risques is the "warmest," Rififi was edited like precision watchmaking and "Grisbi" has the formidable Gabin. It's a toss-up, luckily we don't have to decide, just enjoy all of them.

[–] Jastrzebiec 18 years ago

oops, "Classe tous risques" actually premiered in 1960.

[–] Tylorstown 18 years ago

Touchez Pas is a great movie:it's amazing that it's not better known.One of the fascinating features is the way the seemingly respectable and harmless club owner can suddenly provide torture cells and German stick grenades when required.What exactly were these guys doing during the Occupation?The situation is left nicely ambivalent.Were the gangsters Resistance or Collaborators?

[–] eppis1 16 years ago

I think you posed a good question. I would guess that when the Germans got run out of Paris, they left a huge stock pile of weapons and ammunition. The gangsters just inherited them. (Those grenades were nicknamed "potato mashers." I would think that the gangsters were part of the underground resistance. The collaborators got their just desserts when the occupation ended. Remember the news footages of crowds shaving collaborators heads, and kicking them around? It is surprising to think that all those interesting characters were all dangerous people. Ah, the magic of great cinema!
Regards.

[–] annseton 15 years ago

I wasn't sure about this film in the beginning. It took awhile to get going for me. I really enjoyed Gabin's performance and the little touches that speak volumes, like Gabin having to wear specs to dial the phone.

[–] Jastrzebiec 14 years ago

If you look into it, I think you'll discover that the French Underworld was divided: some collaborated with the Gestapo, some joined the Resistance. That Pierrot (the club owner) knew interrogation techniques is inconclusive. He could have been on the receiving end of a Gestapo grilling and thus knew the drill. The Resistance probably used similar techniques on suspected traitors, as well. Or he could have been a collaborator during the war. I'd like to think that Max was with the Resistance; in that case Pierrot would not have been his friend, had he been with the dark side.

[–] Moana1515 14 years ago

J'aime ce film

[–] funketefilms 15 years ago

I don't know how this film received a bad review. I loved it. While I was viewing it, all I could think about was how I had not heard of this film before. No disrespect to Rififi, another brilliant French Noir, but Touchez pas au grisbi is a superior film.

Jean Gabin is excellent as the aging hustler who simply wants to get out of the game live in peace. The story and supporting cast is excellent.

Thank you Criterion Collection for reviving another cinematic gem.

[–] franzkabuki 10 years ago

Gabin`s excellent. And he looks like some kind of mashup of William Holden and John Goodman.

"facts are stupid things" - Ronald Reagan

[–] richard-III 10 years ago

I just watched it on the big screen, never seen it before. What a cracking great film! I even enjoyed it more than Rififi, another crime classic. And how amazing to watch young Lino Ventura and young Jeanne Moreau in badasz roles. Althoug there were enough quiet scenes, the actors were sparkling and the atmosphere was always a little uneasy. Glad that I took my chance to watch it.

"I don't discriminate between entertainment
and arthouse. A film is a goddam film."

[–] gioconda91423 10 years ago

Wow. Where did you see this on a big screen? I saw it in LA a few times, but it's so little known outside of film buff circles, and so rarely shown.

This film is a genuine masterpiece, and one of my personal favorite movies of all time :)