Revered by everyone from Johnnie To to Madonna, the first of Delon’s three movies with Melville proved iconic for the actor, who is rivetingly attuned to the filmmaker’s aesthetic. Delon’s crisp, laconic characterization of assassin Jef Costello channels a latter-day samurai code and the cinematic lineage of noir anti-heroes, as the vise tightens on him once piano player Cathy Rosier witnesses his latest hit. Nathalie Delon, then the actor’s wife, costars as Jane.

In French with English subtitles

Print courtesy of the Institut Français, thanks to the Cultural Services of the French Embassy, New York