Jean-Pierre Melville: An American in Paris

Aspects of French Cinema (2 vols)Stars and stardom in French cinema (Continuum 2000) andJean-Pierre Melville: An American in Paris (bfi 2003)The author is a French film academic in England, her work - of which here two samples - on Nouvelle Vague and wider themes. She is very knowledgeable, and her writing comes along equally competently in French and in English. Miss Vincendeau's book on Melville (1917-73), the major of the two, is also published by Macmillan in the United States; she also does features in the Melville editions on dvd, Her work on Melville is considered a pivotal contribution, dealing with Melvile as a great talent in film making, and in connecting the time before with that of the Nouvelle Vague in French Cinema.Melville became well known for his tragic, minimalist film noir crime dramas, such as Le Doulos (1962), Le Samouraï (1967) and Le Cercle rouge (1969), starring major actors such as Alain Delon (probably the definitive Melvillian actor), Jean-Paul Belmondo and Lino Ventura. Influenced by American cinema, especially gangster films of the 1930s and '40s, Melville used accessories such as weapons, clothes (the indispensible unisex trench coat), and fedora hats, to shape a characteristic look in his movies. (Wikipedia)On stars and stardom in France, we now at least have an intelligently reasoned list: Max Lindner, Jean Gabin, Brigitte Bardot, Jeanne Moreau, Louis de Funès, Jean-Pierre Belmondo, Alain Delon, Catherine Deneuve, Gérard Dépardieu and Juliette Binoche. As in her Melville study, Miss Vincendeau uses the anaytical style typical of French critics, which makes such studies so much superior to the more (often endlessly) narrative detail of the English and primarily American film press.

A long time Melville fan, I was thrilled to find a study on his work printed in my native English. In the United States many of Melville's films are simply unavailable with English subtitles in either VHS or DVD. I really appreciated being able to access details of these unseen master works through this book. The organization of his work into genres was well thought out. Enjoyable are the tidbits of backstory before, during and after production of each film. Like any passionate artist much of who the man was can be found expressed in his work. This book lovingly invites the reader to seek out and experience these wonderful films. I also found helpful references to other French films I hadn't discovered. I hope and pray Criterion releases more of Melville's work on DVD

Fascinating look into France’s greatest heist film director

Always wanted this book. Thanks.

Ginette Vincendeau's study of Jean-Pierre Melville, subtitled An American in Paris, is a superb addition to anyone's library of works on film directors and is a perfect complement to the now sadly unavailable set of interviews by Rui Nogueira, Melville on Melville.The subtitle is a nice touch. Melville was, for his time, a radical filmmaker who embraced American film noir and, for that matter, American film in general. His influence can easily be perceived in the work of many other directors, both contemporary with his time, and later, including, among others, Truffaut, Tarantino, and John Woo. Indeed, Tarantino and Woo are mentioned here, as is Truffaut and Godard. Melville's famous falling out with the latter is highlighted--this followed a period in which Godard professed admiration for Melville. The turnabout is of some real interest.As this is a current book, Vincendeau naturally did not have the opportunity to speak to Melville directly, as did Nogueira. But she does much with what is known of Melville and offers insights into his character that Nogueira did not. Her dissection of his films is truly first-rate; she analyzes both the films, objectively, and Melville's personal involvement in each of them. Her discussion of the director's perspective on society--what makes it tough, what makes it bearable, what gives it meaning--dovetails nicely with her observations on his work as a filmmaker.One of the great things about buying the Criterion DVD release of Le Cercle Rouge is that it includes an excerpt from the Nogueira book in which Melville himself talks about that film. The Vincendeau book is indispensable for those who want a penetrating examination of one of the greatest of all French filmmakers.Highly recommended.

Thank you!

Die in Großbritannien lehrende Filmwissenschaftlerin Ginette Vincendeau hat mit diesem Buch ein beeindruckendes Standardwerk über das Werk des französischen Kultregisseurs Jean-Pierre Melville vorgelegt. Vincendeau betrachtet dabei Melvilles Schaffen nicht nur unter dem Aspekt des Gangsterfilms, sondern bezieht sein gesamtes Schaffen in ihre Betrachtungen ein, dabei stellt sie Filme in Werk- und Motivgruppen und begründet profund ihre Konzeption in Analysen der Filme, die auch dem Kenner von Melvilles Werken eine Menge neuer Details, Reflexionen und Hintergründe vermittelt. Ein besonderer Aspekt dabei ist Melville und sein Frauenbild, welches Vincendeau beeindruckend differenziert untersucht, und welcher trotz kritischer Anmerkungen ihren Respekt und ihre Liebe für Melvilles Werk zu keinem Zeitpunkt beeinträchtigt.

Cet ouvrage de Ginette Vincendeau retrace toute la carrière et la filmographie d'un des plus grands cinéastes français, Jean-Pierre Melville. L'auteur, qui s'appuie sur une bibliographie la plus exhaustive possible, divise son étude en six parties: un aperçu de la vie et de la carrière de Melville, ses "exercices de style" ( Vingt-quatre heures de la vie d'un clown, Les Enfants terribles, Quand tu liras cette lettre...), ses films des années de guerre (Le Silence de la mer, Léon Morin, prêtre et L'Armée des Ombres), "entre Nouvelle Vague et Amérique" ( Bob, le flambeur, Deux hommes dans Manhattan, L'aîné des Ferchaux), ses films "noirs" (Le Doulos, Le deuxième souffle) et enfin la trilogie Delon (Le Samouraï, le Cercle rouge et Un Flic)Ce très beau livre, très bien documenté est encore illustré de nombreuses photos (en noir et blanc). Seul bémol: il n'est disponible qu'en anglais. On peut regretter qu'il n'ait pas fait l'objet d'une traduction en français; il le mériterait pour une meilleure accessibilité.A recommander à tous les admirateurs de Jean-Pierre Melville et de son oeuvre.

アラン・ドロン主演の「サムライ」や「仁義」でおなじみのジャン・ピエール・メルビル監督（1917-1973）に関する英語の本は、これまで "Melville on Melville" という素晴らしいインタビュー集しかなかったようですが（最近邦訳が出ました）、30年ぶりに彼に関する英語の本が出版されました。メルビル・ファンとしては、それだけで感涙もののうえに、たっぷり資料を使っているし、全体的にうまくまとまっているので大満足です。短編1本と長編13本をいくつかに分類して論じています。彼としては異質な題材の「恐るべき子供たち」や「お前が手紙を読むとき」を含む章や、レジスタンス関連の「海の沈黙」、「司祭レオン・モラン」、「影の軍隊」をまとめた章を前半に置いて、ベルモンドの「いぬ」、バンチュラの「ギャング」、ドロン三部作など、彼が得意とする暗黒映画を後半で重点的に論じています。監督の演出法が中心ですが、観客動員などの商業的なことや、ベルモンドやドロンといったスターについても扱っています。男だけの社会を描いた作品を女性が論じるというのが面白く、当然、性に関する考察もあります。

Well researched and written and the best book on Melville in English.