Audience Member
A Cinematic Critique of Le Samouraï by Jean-Pierre Melville: A Blend of Beauty, Isolation, and Nihilism
Le Samouraï (1967), directed by Jean-Pierre Melville, stands as one of the defining works of neo-noir and crime cinema, transcending its genre’s usual tropes to delve into profound themes of loneliness, alienation, and death. With its masterful cinematography, high-contrast lighting, and cold color palette, Le Samouraï crafts a world devoid of warmth and emotion. The film tells the story of Jef Costello, a professional hitman whose path through silence, isolation, and detachment leads him inexorably toward a seemingly self-chosen death.
Cinematography and Framing: Reflection of Isolation One of Le Samouraï's most striking aspects is its meticulously crafted cinematography and framing. Every shot is designed to reflect Jef Costello's profound solitude. The use of high-contrast lighting and deep shadows creates an enigmatic and cold atmosphere that permeates the entire film. The dominance of cold, neutral tones like grays and blues, paired with impersonal architecture and lifeless environments, emphasizes Jef's sense of alienation from the world. These visual elements seamlessly mirror the protagonist’s emotional state.
Alain Delon's Performance: Silence in Depth Alain Delon delivers a subtle yet powerful performance as Jef Costello, with his cold demeanor and robotic movements embodying a hitman completely detached from the human experience. Delon’s portrayal, with minimal dialogue and controlled facial expressions, effectively conveys a man who belongs to nothing and no one, merely functioning mechanically in a world he no longer wishes to be part of.
The Ending and Suicide: Fate or Nihilism? One of the film’s most provocative elements is its ending. Jef Costello, armed with an unloaded gun and fully aware he is walking to his death, chooses what seems to be a form of suicide. Rather than fighting for survival, he calmly accepts his inevitable demise. This conclusion appears to reflect the film's nihilistic undercurrent, suggesting that life is inherently meaningless and that death may be the only escape from this emptiness.
Critique of Nihilism: Denial of Hope and Human Connection The nihilism present in Le Samouraï suggests a bleak and cold philosophy, one that argues life holds no intrinsic meaning, value, or purpose. Jef Costello, with his indifference toward both life and death, represents someone lost in the modern, soulless world with no way out. But is this worldview truly acceptable?
The film’s nihilism can be critiqued for its one-sided, pessimistic approach. It implies that there is no hope for change or meaning in life. However, in reality, life is far more complex. Even in the face of alienation and despair, humans possess an innate capacity to create meaning, forge connections, and seek purpose. Le Samouraï overlooks this essential human quality by focusing exclusively on the negative aspects of existence.
Despite his isolation, Jef’s fate is not the only possible outcome. Humans, unlike the cold image projected in the film, are beings of hope, resilience, and constant search for meaning. While Jef is estranged from society, this estrangement is not due to any external inevitability but rather to his lack of effort or desire to find his place in the world. Instead of fighting for life, he chooses to embrace death. Yet, another choice always exists: to return to life and attempt to rebuild human connections.
Conclusion: A Beautiful but Nihilistic Vision Needing Reconsideration Le Samouraï is a film that excels aesthetically, with its exquisite framing, lighting, and Alain Delon's brilliant performance offering a captivating exploration of isolation and death. However, the nihilistic philosophy that runs through the film offers a limited and disheartening view of life. While the film successfully portrays the void of meaning, it overlooks the fact that life always holds the potential for creating purpose, love, and connection. Nihilism, in the end, is only a temporary lens through which we view reality; human beings are capable of finding their way through this darkness toward light and hope.
Le Samouraï may be a film about isolation and death, but it also challenges us to reconsider this narrow outlook and recognize that, even in the face of nihilism, the search for hope and meaning is always within our reach.
Rated 3.5/5 Stars •
Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars
10/19/24
Full Review
Audience Member
Damn good film from beginning to end.
Rated 5/5 Stars •
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
09/21/24
Full Review
Alan W
They say never meet your heroes, but maybe one shouldn't watch your heroes' favourite films either. Before this 4K tribute screening to Alain Delon's recent passing, I've never seen this revered classic which many notable single-moniker directors (Tarantino! Scorsese! Fincher! Coens! to name but a few) have claimed to have tremendous influence on their works. While I can see how Jean-Pierre Melville's slick and stylish compositions have since been copied and Delon's professional hitman Jef Costello is the epitome of stoic coolness and beauty, his taciturn performance falls a little flat for me (and the less said the better about the stiff Bond Girl-like vacuousness of the film's only two female characters); but it's Melville's screenplay which I find most problematic. Seen through modern eyes, the story may seem a bit of a cliché now, yet there's still punch in its simplicity, as it follows Costello all over Paris pursued by both the police and the people who hired him after a contract job. Sumptuously shot on location, this doubles as a visual historical record of the city, if not its metro system; but as the narrative begins to drive Costello into a corner, logical and narrative coherence seem to give way to moodiness and confusion. For a film which thrives on meticulous details, (how Costello sets up his alibi; the seemingly insignificant chirping of his pet finch) I can overlook bad continuity errors but I have difficulty grappling with the narrative inconsistencies, which may or may not be intentional. The most glaringly obvious one being that had Costello changed his signature hat and raincoat get-up, he would've probably escaped the police's attention in the first place. However, given that Delon's image is its entire justification, I can only surmised that it's style over substance for a film like this.
Rated 2.5/5 Stars •
Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars
08/26/24
Full Review
Jonathan G
Le Samouraï. A captivating and brilliant masterpiece from Jean-Pierre Melville. Alain Delon plays an absolutely great character with Jef Costello, and the way this film looks is just phenomenal. The lighting sets the entire tone, and the smooth jazz score elevates that tone to a completely different level. I’d honestly say… I had no flaws with this. Couldn’t even imagine a single thing wrong with it. It’s a perfect film, one that holds up and also continues to live vicariously through modern film (ie, Fincher’s “The Killer”).
Rated 5/5 Stars •
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
08/26/24
Full Review
Sams K
Legendary! Great acting, everything's perfect!
Rated 5/5 Stars •
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
08/24/24
Full Review
B M
With the recent passing of Alain Delon I thought I'd watch one of his 'classics' that I missed back in the day.
An OK movie, not his best IMO, and I'm surprised at the very high critics and audience score. There are a few terrible flaws in both the plot and costume of the day that render the story and the cat-and-mouse game quite silly. We have a seemingly highly skilled, precocious hit man who goes to the trouble of arranging an alibi the night of his crime, but then dresses in a distinctive turned-up collar rain coat and distinct hat (i.e. can't be missed in any crowd, no one else wears hats), and makes no effort to avoid being observed. The director makes the hat a major statement throughout the film, but the context is so silly it undoes any 'supension of disbelief'. And the ending makes no sense,
To be honest, I had trouble staying with it.
Rated 2.5/5 Stars •
Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars
08/19/24
Full Review
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