happytrigger-64-390517 Very Very strange film, far from exciting, just two killers on the road to kill discussing about their "profession" or about anything they meet in France comparing it to States or not ("it looks like California").it's more a new wave gangster movie than traditional, and the cinematography by Raoul Coutard reminds me of Breathless by Jean-Luc Godard, with lot of ordinary conversation : for example, the two hit men discuss about the song they're listening on radio, "The House Of Rising Sun", saying "look what they've done about it" (I think I recognized Johnny Halliday singing).At last, there is some action in the end with the final confrontation. So we have a movie with lot of conversation (and even lot of shots showing places around with no particular help for the fiction) ending on a slaughter. Well, I wouldn't be surprised that Quentin Tarentino loves Hail Mafia. And even Wenders and Jarmusch.The main actors, Jack Klugman, Henri Silva and Eddie Constantine are perfect in tough guys, it's just a pity the movie do not show them more in action as tough guys. But it is a good surprise seeing Eddie Constantine as a looser, without any Lemmy Caution private joke. A great noir character for him. Eddie Constantine played the same year in Alphaville by Godard. 1965 was his new wave year.Personally, I like jazz score but I found this one doesn't fit with the movie, the music being completely different from the story, but that's personal opinion.So, if you like action packed gangster movies, don't jump on it. If you like Godard style, this one is for you.

dbborroughs Very very good mob movie with Eddie Constantine the target of his former mob brothers. They want the retired gangster silenced so that there is no chance that he will come back from France to talk to the Senate committee on organized crime. To that end the mob sends two hit men (Henry Silva and Jack Klugman) to Europe to hunt down Constantine.More a drama then a "crime" film (with the action that implies) the movie really is about the relationship between the two hit men as they inter act on the hunt for their target. The performances of both Silva and Klugmen are excellent and its clear that Silva was a much better actor then his later supporting roles suggested. Equally good, and a revelation to people who only know him from the Odd Couple or Quincy, is Jack Klugman. Its a shame that Klugman kind of got lost in the TV series rut since he is clearly capable of a performances that are more complex than what a TV series require. The pairing of the two vastly under rated actors make for a superior drama that has been unfairly lost over the years. Hopefully a somewhere down the road someone will rescue this film and give it some sort of revival.This is one to search out.

django-1 Writer-director-producer Raoul Levy hit a home run with this moody, intelligent, very-well acted crime film. On the surface, the plot seems simple--mafia soldiers Henry Silva and Jack Klugman are on an assignment to kill a former mafia guy played by Eddie Constantine. But the story--and most of the film--is really about the relationship between Henry Silva's and Jack Klugman's characters, and both give brilliant performances. I would never have thought of this pair of actors together, but as well as I know each of their works, I saw only the two characters, real people, not the actors. Eddie Constantine is not in the film all that much--it's Klugman and Silva's movie. Raoul Levy is probably best known here in the US as the producer of five Bridget Bardot films and of the underrated THE DEFECTOR, the last movie of Montgomery Clift. The washed-out monochrome photography by Raoul Coutard, the brilliant jazz score by Hubert Rostaing, and Levy's intelligent, literate script all come together in a powerful film that will pack an unexpected wallop for those expecting just another euro-crime film. No wonder Henry Silva's european career took off right after this film. The existential plot could easily have been from a spaghetti western or a samurai film, and anyone who has ever considered those genres (and the euro-crime film) as metaphors for life and society should find a copy of this film as soon as possible. For me, one of the five best European-made crime films of the 1960's, and I've seen hundreds of them.

vjetorix Henry Silva and Jack Klugman are hit men sent to France to kill Eddie Constantine. The two spend time on the road getting to know each other and their very different styles of life. Silva is a meticulous person with very definite ideas about his approach to his profession while Klugman is more easy going and less philosophical. This small movie boasts not only the talents of the principal actors but also high-contrast black and white photography that gives it a very new wave film noir look as the boys in their black suits and skinny ties wander around in the Paris night. The French countryside is captured in washed out tones that emphasize how far out of the water these two fish are at the moment. The jazz score for the film is excellent small combo stuff that perfectly matches the stark images. There's also a couple of nice twists in the plot and a dandy downbeat ending. This is a genuine undiscovered gem and you won't be sorry you took a chance on it.