The film story depicts Emile Buisson, following the death of his wife and child, escaping from a psychiatric institution in 1947 and returning to Paris. Buisson, who three years later would become France's public enemy number one, begins a murderous rampage through the French capital.
Acting
Delon and Trintignant's icy, wordless confrontations.
Direction
Deray's clinical observation of violence's aftermath.
Cinematography
Rain-soaked Paris streets that breathe menace.
Director
Jacques Deray
Alain Delon
Roger Borniche
Jean-Louis Trintignant
Émile Buisson
Claudine Auger
Catherine
Renato Salvatori
Mario Poncini
André Pousse
Jean-Baptiste Buisson
Marco Perrin
Vieuchene
Henri Guybet
Hidoine
Maurice Barrier
Rene Bollec
Denis Manuel
Lucien Darros
Maurice Biraud
Owner of the Saint-Appoline hotel
Mario David
Raymond Pelletier
Paul Crauchet
Paul Robier
William Sabatier
Ange
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Based on real detective Roger Borniche's memoirs; the film sparked controversy for humanizing a mass murderer during an era of French political violence.
Deray deliberately avoided showing Buisson's crimes on screen, forcing audiences to identify with Borniche's accumulating horror through case files and corpses — a structural choice that infuriated action-hungry producers.
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