More from the movie corner of Graziella: Le Samouraï
This week’s film is a French neo-noir that takes us back in time to 1960s Paris and the unforgettable features of Alain Delon. Shot in 1967 by Jean-Pierre Melville (who chose this last name after reading Moby Dick), Le Samouraï is a supreme stylistic exercise. Melville drains the film’s color to a series of cold metallic grays and muted blues that seem to rhyme with Delon’s eyes. With a nod to the Japanese lonely warrior mythology, a dialogue paired down to a bare minimum, a cat-and-mouse chase through the Paris Metro, and an unforgettable little bird in a cage, Le Samouraï is undoubtedly a gem of its genre.
Watch Le Samouraï on Kanopy here.
