Le Deuxième Souffle (1966)

Director Jean-Pierre Melville's obsession with American crime thrillers is in abundant evidence in Le Deuxieme Souffle, an excellent film despite being a bit too long. Melville's obsession is not, fortunately, concerned with merely copying its American counterparts, but in using them as a model against which he can play variations of his own, until what emerges has a life and vibrancy that is unique to itself. Significantly, Souffle also allows Melville to make some subtle (and not so subtle) allusions to Nazi-occupied France and the problem of resistance vs. cooperation; this is most evident toward the end of the film, when the leading character becomes a man trying to escape his pursuers while trying to, in his own way, clear his name. Melville's direction is taut, despite the film's 150-minute playing time, and tension is present almost throughout. He does a marvelous job with the set pieces that are the lifeblood of this particular genre, and the hijacking of the armored vehicle is especially effective. Souffle isn't perfect; some of it feels a bit unfinished, as if Melville didn't quite achieve what he was aiming for. But there's so much power and impact that most will be willing to forgive Le Deuxieme Souffle its lapses and revel in its pleasures. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide