After carrying out a flawlessly planned hit, Jef Costello, a contract killer with samurai instincts, finds himself caught between a persistent police investigator and a ruthless employer, and not even his armor of fedora and trench coat can protect him.
Direction
Melville invented the hitman aesthetic everyone copies.
Cinematography
Blue-gray Paris never looked more haunting.
Acting
Delon's face does more than most scripts.
Director
Jean-Pierre Melville
Alain Delon
Jef Costello
François Périer
Superintendant
Nathalie Delon
Jane Lagrange
Cathy Rosier
Valérie
Michel Boisrond
Wiener
Catherine Jourdan
Locker Room Girl
Jean-Pierre Posier
Olivier Rey
Robert Favart
Bartender
Roger Fradet
Inspector #1
Carlo Nell
Inspector #2
Robert Rondo
Inspector #3
André Thorent
Policeman / Taxi Driver
Jacques Deschamps
Policeman Speaker
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Delon himself provided the film's weapons, borrowed from real French underworld contacts.
The 'lonely hitman' archetype starts here — influencing everything from John Wick to Drive.
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