Le Samouraï - (Jean-Pierre Melville;1967;France/Italy) After killing a club owner, a hitman finds himself pursued by both the police and his employers. This may be the greatest crime/suspense ever. The film is perfectly paced, directed meticulously by Melville. While the plot is simple, Melville brings the film into deeper levels that most crime films lack today. Alain Delon's performance is haunting, like an anti-social Bogart. The Jazz score is also wonderful, adding a pulsating feeling to some scenes, and a nice calmness to others. Definitely the best Neo-Noir along with Chinatown. Another power the film holds is containing less action and dialogue than most movies have, while maintaining fascination that holds strong from scene-to-scene.
