Films/DVD Asylum

Posted by dave c (A) on April 19, 2006 at 16:06:25

I saw this film last night as a screening by the World Cinema Club, associated with the Brisbane International Film Festival.
They seem to be putting films on about once a month and its a great addition to my viewing.
Rififi (translates as "rough and tumble" as we are told during the film) concerns a team of robbers who break into a jewellers.
The film was made in 1955 and must have been a bit of a shocker in its day, real Euro-Hollywood Noire, with (at least partial) nudity...ok, breasts, sadism, promiscuous sex, drug taking and dealing and multiple murders.
It centres on a extraordinary 32 minutes scene where the crew commit the robbery by cutting down through a floor into the jewlellers, disarming the alarm system, breaking into the safe and making away... all in complete silence... there is no more than the odd sounds on a hammer (muffled) and things being put down. There is not even any music.
The film ends with a typical noir-ish redemption from one of the robbers rescuing a kidnapped child and driving through Paris (though not with the warm wind in his hair!!) while bleeding to death. This scene is actually very hallucinatory as he weakens, blood running down his leg... very noire.
Its a great film, just over 2 hours and well worth seeing.
I don't think I have given too much away... certainly not any more than if I told you a blues song was a 12 bar...
See it.