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Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
Audience Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Binding: DVD
EAN: 5035673005927
Format: PAL
Number Of Discs: 1
Region Code: 2
Sales Rank: 188252
Theatrical Release Date: December 01, 1990
Editorial Review:
Amazon.com:
Crime cinema has never been so meticulously and coolly executed. Taciturn thief Alain Delon (intense and dapper in trenchcoat and fedora) and escaped prisoner Gian Maria Volonte cross paths as if by fate, bound by saving each other's life, and join with disgraced ex-cop Yves Montand for their next job: a daring jewel robbery. Le Cercle Rouge is the ultimate expression of the romantic doom that Jean-Pierre Melville established in his masterpieces Bob Le Flambeur and Le Samourai. The centerpiece heist, a wordless 20-minute sequence with masked men communicating in codified gestures, is a tour de force of cinematic efficiency that tops even Rififi in its celebration of criminal skill and nerve. Melville's cool detachment doesn't allow us to really warm up to these uncompromising pros, but his cinematic precision is spellbinding and his unforgiving world of loyalty, professionalism, sacrifice, and codes of honor is an irresistible underworld fantasy.
The Criterion DVD restores the film, which was originally cut by 40 minutes for its American release, to its full-length director's cut. Additionally, it features new interviews with Melville's assistant director Bernard Stora and friend and expert Rui Nogueira, rare archival interviews with the director and his cast, and a new introduction by filmmaker and Melville fan John Woo among its wealth of supplements. --Sean Axmaker
Customer Reviews
Average Rating: 
Rating:  - A fine movie by Jean-Pierre Melville, and be sure to watch Army of Shadows
"All men are guilty," says the chief of the police. "They're born innocent but it doesn't last." Add this bit of nihilism to Jean-Pierre Melville's fascination with the idea of the crook's code of honor and you have Le Cercle Rouge. This code of honor among crooks, however, is not simply a cliché; it's a figment of the imagination even when film moralists -- realistic moralists by their viewpoint, romantic moralists by most others' -- began to make movies on the subject. Their theme is that it isn't ... Read More
Rating: - Melville's best film...
This is my favorite Melville film, one that I constantly think about. Jean Pierre Melville never gets mentioned with the French New Wave or any other film movement, even though many have acknowledged his influence (John Woo is a major fan, for example. He listed Melville's Le Samourai as his favorite film). Here the film centers around 3 thieves pulling off a startling heist. The actual heist is one of the greatest set pieces in the history of cinema, running roughly 30 minutes and with only one single ... Read More
Rating:  - Intellectual Caper Film
A caper film with a fatalistic twist. The protagonists are thieves working in ignorance of larger forces around them. Clever plotting and very interesting cinematography but this movie lacks the psychological power of Melville's best work.
Rating:  - A darling of the film appreciation classes
Film buffs love this film because it is everything that film buffs love. This here is CINEMA, sonny, and don't you forget it!
Oh, of course a couple of Amazon reviewers have used such words as "passionless," "ludicrous," "unbelievable," "silly" (twice) and "clumsy" (also twice), but what do they know? They are probably people still laboring under the antediluvian notions that a film ought to make sense and, heh-heh, even be entertaining.
The essence of this movie is its coolness. ... Read More
Rating: - Essential French cinema: Melville's 'Le Cercle Rouge .'
French film director, Jean-Pierre Melville (1917-1973) is best known for his austere films noir, Le Samourai - Criterion Collection and Le Cercle Rouge (1970). He remains an important influence for directors like John Woo and Quentin Tarantino. Le Cercle Rouge is a classic crime/drama/thriller featuring Alain Delon as the leading character, Corey, a glacier-cool master thief, released from prison on the same day that Vogel (Gian Maria Volonté), a murderer, escapes police custody by jumping from a moving train. ... Read More
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