Le Cercle Rouge

"No place to hide . . . nowhere to run . . ."

1970 2h 20m FR

🙌

7.6

BANGER

★7.6TMDB · 758

CrimeDramaThriller

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

When French criminal Corey gets released from prison, he resolves to never return. He is quickly pulled back into the underworld, however, after a chance encounter with escaped murderer Vogel. Along with former policeman and current alcoholic Jansen, they plot an intricate jewel heist. All the while, quirky Police Commissioner Mattei, who was the one to lose custody of Vogel, is determined to find him.

“No place to hide . . . nowhere to run . . .”

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Where to watch · US

Cast

Alain Delon
Corey
Bourvil
Commissioner François Mattei
Gian Maria Volonté
Vogel
Yves Montand
Jansen
Paul Crauchet
The Receiver
Paul Amiot
Marchand, Inspector General of Police
Pierre Collet
Prison Guard
André Ekyan
Rico

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Jean-Pierre Melville
Writers: Jean-Pierre Melville
Languages: French
Countries: France, Italy

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

ERA

Did you know

56 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 2 countries: France, Italy.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Jean-Pierre Melville, shot by Henri Decaë. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Éric Demarsan. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Marie-Sophie Dubus shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Alain Delon and Bourvil and Gian Maria Volonté carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "No place to hide . . . nowhere to run . . .".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0065531 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Jean-Pierre Melville directs. Henri Decaë behind the camera. Éric Demarsan scores. Marie-Sophie Dubus cuts. Produced in France, Italy. Dialogue in French.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

156 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
2International production across 2 countries: France, Italy.
3Directed by Jean-Pierre Melville, shot by Henri Decaë. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Éric Demarsan. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Marie-Sophie Dubus shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Alain Delon and Bourvil and Gian Maria Volonté carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "No place to hide . . . nowhere to run . . .".
8IMDB entry: tt0065531 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Classified under 17 themes, including "prison", "corruption", "paris, france", "escape".

The technical file

Cinematography: Henri Decaë
Original score: Éric Demarsan
Editing: Marie-Sophie Dubus
Production design: Théobald Meurisse
Runtime: 140 min · 2h 20m
Status: Released
Original language: FR
Certification (US): NR
IMDB: Le Cercle Rouge (1970)

Also by

Jean-Pierre Melville

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

CRCulver2018-09-01
★ 8/10
Jean-Pierre Meville's 1970 film Le Cercle rouge (The Red Circle) is a crime caper based on the interplay of several initially unacquainted individuals. As Melville's fake quote from the Buddha that serves as the intertitle goes, "When men, even unknowingly, are to meet one day, whatever may befall each, whatever the diverging paths, on the said day, they will inevitably come together in the red circle." These men are Corey (Alain Delon), who has just been released from prison, Vogel (Gian Maria Volonté), who has escaped from his police guard before he could even reach prison, and the alcoholic marksman Jansen (Yves Montand). In the jewelry heist that these desparate lowlifes plan together, they are pursued by the detective Mattei (André Bourvil). Meville's pacing is extremely slow – it has to be in order to ensure that the audience understands the complex relationships of who knows who – and suffice it to say, people who don't already like mid-century French auteur films may find this intolerable. However, if you are a fan of the French New Wave, you may find Meville's ability to sustain suspense a delicious torture. This viewer was on the edge of his seat the whole time waiting to find out what would happen next. Melville's visual aesthetic is also consistently attractive: muted colours, careful shots of the characters faces at a couple of key moments, and a striking constrast between the quiet world of these criminals and the bustle of everyday Paris. I must admit that I was prepared for some disappointment, as this was Meville's third film of criminal conspiracy in three years (preceded by the hitman drama Le Samouraï and the French Resistance saga L'Armée des ombres). However, in spite of Meville's continued interest in the genre, Le Cercle rouge offers something fresh and individual. There are a couple of intertextual looks back to Le Samouraï in the sets, but Meville shows how talented his favourite actors were by having a couple of good guys in that film play baddies in this one and vice versa. All in all, this is not a must-see, life-changing film, but certainly a classic film that has stood the test of time and well worth seeing.
CinemaSerf2023-06-03
★ 7/10
Though it takes quite a while to get going, and I constantly wanted to rub that annoying moustache from the face of Alain Delon ("Corey") I really rather enjoyed this crime caper. Delon recruits the dapper ex-cop with a drink problem - "Jansen" (Yves Montand), and the recently escaped "Vogel" (Gian Maria Volontè) into his plan to rob an exclusive Parisian jewellers. Situated on the top floor of a town house with state of the art security, they must recce the scene and use all of their initiative and ingenuity to crack the systems and pinch - and dispose of - $20 million worth of loot. Simultaneously, a couple of hoodlums are chasing "Corey" after he relieved his former boss of some cash, and the police - led by accomplished copper "Mattei" (André Bourvil) are on the hunt for "Vogel". I can't say the acting set the thing on fire for me, it is certainly "cool" but you can over-do that, and at times these three men are pretty devoid of much depth to their characters. I could also have been doing with more going on in the first hour; the plot establishment all takes too long - but once Jean-Pierre Melville gets his ducks in a row and the film has a clearer focus, then the pace picks up nicely and there is quite a decent degree of tension peppered with the odd bit of dark humour. Not mad keen on the ending, but hey - that'd be telling.