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JeanPierreMelville

Bob le flambeur [Bob the Gambler] (Jean-Pierre Melville, 1956)

Jun

13

frites

Bob le flambeur (1956)

Anne (Isabelle Corey), a cute blonde with a beret, eats a fry (French, obviously) while giving us a side glance. It's all very proto-Vague. DP: Henri Decaë.

– I saw you the other morning, eating frites.

– I like frites.

Bob le flambeur [Bob the Gambler] (Jean-Pierre Melville, 1956)

Jun

13

Friday

Bob le flambeur (1956)

Bob (Roger Duchesne) at the tables, gambling. DP: Henri Decaë.

An unlucky character on Friday the 13th

“I'd even lose at hopscotch these days.”

– Bob Montagné

Bob gambles, and always wins. But then he starts losing. Not just games, also his friends.

Les enfants terribles [The Terrible Children] (Jean-Pierre Melville, 1950)

Nov

13

World Orphans Day

Les enfants terribles (1950)

The siblings – children on the cusp of adulthood, played by adults – sharing a bed. Elisabeth (Nicole Stéphane) points up towards the ceiling with one arm wrapped around her brother Paul's (Edouard Dermithe) neck. Both wear dressing gowns. DP: Henri Decaë.

With their mother bedridden, Elisabeth (Nicole Stéphane) nurtures her snowball-fight-injured brother Paul (Edouard Dermithe) back to health.

“Their heritage of instability, extravagant caprice, and natural elegance was their paternal portion.”

– Jean Cocteau, Les enfants terribles (1929)

Withdrawn in their family home, they form a strong manipulative bond, drawing others into their games.

Le Samouraï [The Samurai] (Jean-Pierre Melville, 1967)

Apr

25

License Plates Day

Le Samouraï (1967)

A pair of hands switching license plates on the front of a Citroën DS. The scene is almost black-and-white. DP: Henri Decaë.

Hitman Jef Costello (Alain Delon) coolly drives a #Citroën DS 21 to his garagiste (André Salgues), who routinely switches the license plates in a beautifully wordless, efficiently lit scene.

“I never lose. Never really.”