After finding OSS 117 is Not Dead (1957-also reviewed) to be a fun viewing last night,I looked in my DVD pile for other "light" French crime titles. Having found Michel Deville's Eaux profondes (1981-also reviewed) to be a magnificent Patricia Highsmith adaptation, and finding dbdumonteil's review to strike a chord with me,I got set to find out how lucky Jo is.
View on the film:
Criss-crossing Jo and the gangs doing robberies and going to jail over the opening, co-writer/director Michel Deville continues his 11 film collaboration with co-writer/editor Nina Companeez via the low-lighting giving the titles a Film Noir appearance, which is contrasted by stylisation of the editing and camera moves tilting it all to a sparkling "Caper" atmosphere. Rolling with the punches on cops and thugs, Deville and Companeez go gloriously over the top for the fight scenes,as Jo keeps his hat safely on whilst having tables/chairs thrown at him, (all of which have no impact!)which are cleared up by Jo with punches that have a wooden thump sound effect. Filmed on the streets of Paris,Companeez and Deville send the old man & the gun Jo out on the streets with debonair rapid-fire whip-pans and tracking-shots gliding along to Jo's sleigh attempts to get back in the game.
Taking their hats off to Pierre Lesou's novel, the adaptation by Deville and Companeez's smartly keep Jo's straight-ahead state of mind serious, while playing up the comedic Caper edges, which sees Jo underhandedly make an attempt to help a fellow crook escape appear to be him helping out the cops, along with not taking no for an answer, by pushing into all the side deals, dames and killings which have flowered since his group splintered whilst Jo was in the slammer. The only time they appeared together, Pierre and Claude Brasseur give delightful turns as commissaire Loudeac and Loudeac Fils dit Junior, who Claude has falling over himself with fear over Pierre's commissaire Loudeac barking orders at everyone as a hard-nosed cop. Proving to all his former gang that he still has it,Eddie Constantine gives a terrific, charismatic performance as Jo, thanks to Constantine having Jo hit all his dirty deeds not as a thug, but with the professional slickness of an old pro who knows how lucky he is.
View on the film:
Criss-crossing Jo and the gangs doing robberies and going to jail over the opening, co-writer/director Michel Deville continues his 11 film collaboration with co-writer/editor Nina Companeez via the low-lighting giving the titles a Film Noir appearance, which is contrasted by stylisation of the editing and camera moves tilting it all to a sparkling "Caper" atmosphere. Rolling with the punches on cops and thugs, Deville and Companeez go gloriously over the top for the fight scenes,as Jo keeps his hat safely on whilst having tables/chairs thrown at him, (all of which have no impact!)which are cleared up by Jo with punches that have a wooden thump sound effect. Filmed on the streets of Paris,Companeez and Deville send the old man & the gun Jo out on the streets with debonair rapid-fire whip-pans and tracking-shots gliding along to Jo's sleigh attempts to get back in the game.
Taking their hats off to Pierre Lesou's novel, the adaptation by Deville and Companeez's smartly keep Jo's straight-ahead state of mind serious, while playing up the comedic Caper edges, which sees Jo underhandedly make an attempt to help a fellow crook escape appear to be him helping out the cops, along with not taking no for an answer, by pushing into all the side deals, dames and killings which have flowered since his group splintered whilst Jo was in the slammer. The only time they appeared together, Pierre and Claude Brasseur give delightful turns as commissaire Loudeac and Loudeac Fils dit Junior, who Claude has falling over himself with fear over Pierre's commissaire Loudeac barking orders at everyone as a hard-nosed cop. Proving to all his former gang that he still has it,Eddie Constantine gives a terrific, charismatic performance as Jo, thanks to Constantine having Jo hit all his dirty deeds not as a thug, but with the professional slickness of an old pro who knows how lucky he is.