Scarecrow-88 Robert Bresson's Pickpocket was to me at its best when showing a French young man, with little prospects, learning the art of swindling wallets, moneys, and watches from unsuspecting citizens walking the streets of Paris. When he joins an outfit, the pickpocketing is astonishing to see unfold, particularly in how the fingers and hands move from one victim's coat (and pants) pockets and purses to another. It really is an artform that Bresson's camera seamlessly captures…this is a marvel of filmmaking. The camera will spot a bag or money sticking out of a wallet, alternate to the eyes of Martin LaSalle noticing them, and allows us to see how it all transpires, typically with success…but not always. Interestingly, LaSalle's first real test—removing money from a purse during a horserace—was almost his undoing, while the last pickpocket (the difficult, unrealistic task of trying to swipe a fat wad (literally paraded in his face by the "winner" which should have been a suspicious sign; the lure was just too great) from the inner coat pocket of someone standing *behind* him proves to be a major mistake. The train sequence, as three pickpockets work over a number of travelers boarding, is a knockout.Ultimately, the film is about desperation and the driving urge to take from others to support yourself. Sometimes, the lure to pickpocket is addictive. LaSalle's performance is subtle and never explosive or overdone. It is all carefully nuanced how he reacts to threats against his livelihood, the obvious signs that his mother is about dead, the constant presence of the police waiting for him to slip, and his avoidance of taking responsibility for a life of crime. Marika Green is the poverty-stricken neighbor who tends to LaSalle's mom out of care and is often pleading with him to see her. LaSalle and Green embracing with a prison gate between them at the end is quite a powerful image due to what it takes to get them to this point. Prior to this, the two avoided this inevitability. Jacques (Pierre Leymarie) is the friend of LaSalle's Michel and moral compass that tries to steer him away from the pickpocket life and out of his crumbling, lowly domicile…to no avail. Returning from a European pickpocket adventure, Michel is as broke and penniless as before he left Paris so that the police's presence in his life would diminish. Learning of a sexual coupling between his friends, Jacques is gone while Green's Jeanne watches over the child that came from their loveless union. This urges him to continue his pickpocket ways.This is as good an example I could think of explaining the seduction into a life of crime, the compulsion that comes when someone becomes good at stealing to survive, and how the lure of not stopping can only end up with the thief locked in a prison cell. Bresson doesn't try to tug on your heartstrings, either…he shows you this man's story and doesn't judge him harshly. He exists in a real world that isn't always kind or prosperous. There are winners and losers in this life: those who have it better than others, and Michel fends for himself in a way that is unlawful…but to him is the only answer.

Cosmoeticadotcom All in all, while the film is good- mainly on the strength of several bravura isolated scenes, it often comes off as something akin to Neo-Realism Lite. There is nothing of the real pathos nor insight that invests some of the classics from Federico Fellini, Vittorio De Sica, and the Italian classics that were made a decade before this film. Consequently, the film comes off as all head with little heart or soul, and, despite its occasional bravura moments, the film is not particularly deep, and especially so considering it against the titanic achievements of Mouchette and Au Hasard Balthazar. Also, there are numerous little moments that just clunk, starting with the film's titled opening, wherein words scrawl across the screen and tell us of what we are about to witness, that this film is not a thriller but a work of art about the communion of two souls. This overt invocation of Romantic bidungsromans just tanks, in and of itself, and because it utterly destroys the film's end. We know that Michel and Jeanne will end up together, and, worse, the film does not mitigate this solecism by providing a meaningful how the end is reach, even if we know what the end will be.So, Pickpocket is not a great film, much less a masterpiece, in any sense of the term that has relevance, but it is a film that shows potential for plumbing things at a level deeper than even films that are better realized. Unfortunately for it, and its viewers, that potential would only be realized in later Bresson offerings. Of course, there are certainly worse things in life, though. Ask Michel or his portrayer.

Pablo Pickpocket is a film that apparently has serious flaws- from the very beginning it displays little to no emotion as the actors on screen just say their lines and the camera just follows them from a distance, with no close-ups or any other tricks.But what is unique about this film is that this very criticism is actually a deliberate attempt to cause uneasiness in the viewer. And it succeeds- the anxiety, as felt by the pickpocket in his everyday living, is also transmitted to us. So, to correct my previous statement: this movie does not lack emotions- it has emotions: anxiety, uncertainty, but these are delivered in an unconventional manner.From a personal standpoint, I wasn't sure if I liked it or not. It is hard to appreciate this dimension of the film at first. But after seeing some extras from the excellent Criterion package, I was able to understand better. How Bresson actually committed to cause these emotions in the viewer, how he re-shot several times various scenes until the actors just repeated their lines, until no trait of emotions were left. Michel's narration voice-over is flat, plain. These were non-professional actors set to work in a non-standard way, Bresson's way. And the result is this: a film somewhat off-putting, but still a great work of art.

kosmasp And I'm not talking about any loot, but about the audience. You will either love or loathe the movie. And while comparisons to Taxi Driver and other "loner movies" might be right, it's also true that they are far better written (and in Taxi Driver also with "real actors", in contrast to the non-professionals at hand here).If that is something that might not put you off, than maybe a few weird scenes might do the trick. The narrative seems to be all over the place, an unlikeable "hero" and pretentious script writing. And still through all the flaws, there are a few good moments in between. The existential questions it raises, but also the wry humour in places. Though not as solid as (I) expected, it still has a few points to make, through all the flaws it has.