Le Samouraï (1967)

Le samouraï opens with the line:

There is no greater solitude than that of the samurai unless it is that of the tiger in the jungle…

It tells the story about a hitman, Jef Costello (Alain Delon), who has been hired to murder the boss of a nightclub. Costello is very effective and always makes sure he doesn’t get caught. He plans everything thoroughly. He steals a car, has the number plates changed, makes sure he has an alibi and doesn’t leave traces.

He executes his assignment, but doesn’t manage to do it unseen as there are several witnesses.
The police starts rounding up people in various neighbourhoods that match the description.
With all this attention from the police and added pressure from the people who gave him the job getting nervous Jef is forced to live as a tiger in a concrete jungle.

Le samouraï paints a great picture of France at the end of the sixties. It shows both the night life and what the streets looked like. The story itself is timeless, which makes it so good. Costello lives alone with just a bird accompanying him, but he even seems to have the bird just for one reason. His house is almost empty and it seems to reflect his work and way of living, keeping everything minimal so he can stay focused.
Something that immediately stood out was that there was nothing said during the first 10 minutes of the film. As a viewer you see the way Costello work, supported with great music (which is excellent throughout the movie). It really adds a lot to the whole feel of it.

As the walls seem to be closing in on Costello he has to be more careful. The ending of the film was just amazing. Alain Delon plays his role as assassin excellently, very calculated and despite all the pressure very cool.

After I saw the poster of this movie in a movie theater some weeks ago I just had to see it and I don’t regret watching it. It tells a very interesting story, has a lot of great images and captures the spirit of the sixties perfectly. I highly recommend it.

Score: 9

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