Bob Le Flambeur

John Woo once said that “Melville is God to me”. The man who has made such films as The Killer and Hard Boiled looks at this French director as a main influence on his work and possibly the greatest director of all time. Jean-Pierre Melville is a French director who worked from 1945 to about 1972 making 13 films and a short film. In 1956 he decided to make a French gangster film reflecting his adoration of American gangster films. The films stands as a landmark in cinematic history for multiple reasons and is a highly entertaining film at the same time.

There are multiple factors that make Bob le Flambeur stand out as a film. For one the use of the single jump cut is huge for a film at this time and would stand out as an influence on Jean-Luc Godard’s work. Godard even mentioned that Bob le Flambeur is his favorite Melville work. The film also included the use of handheld camera, something that would also be influential on French cinema. The combination of these make Bob seems as landmark for the French New Wave movement.

Still technique is not the only thing that stands out about the film; it also is a great story to watch. Roger Duchesne puts in a great performance as Bob, the brains behind the operation, as we follow him gather a team to rob the casino. The gathering of the team and the planning of the robbery feel like a huge influence on the Ocean films and interesting to see each piece of the puzzle come together. The film also follows the interesting relationship between the officer and Bob, which Woo later used in The Killer, and a love triangle between Bob, Anne a girl which he is trying to save, and Paolo his protégé.

Though the part of the film that stands out the best to me is the interesting and unexpected ending. As we make it to the end of the story, within 5 minutes we see a favorite character die and Bob end up winning a fortune at the casino. It happens so fast that we barely have time to wrap our minds around it. Roger even gets arrested but its implied that he will be able to buy his way out. So what the whole movie has been building up to can’t be put into action and it turns out Roger didn’t even need to rob the casino at all. The irony that the gambling that was destroying his life at the beginning of the film eventually saves him is clearly seen. Some will hate it but it happen so quickly you barely have time to form an opinion on it while its happening.

Bob le Flameur is an entertaining film and a hugely influential film for French cinema and international cinema. Is Melville God? Maybe not but he certainly was a genius with film and impacted it like few have. Even Stanley Kubrick himself that Bob was the greatest crime film and made him give up doing them himself.

3.5/4