PEPE LE MOKO

Hunted by the police for his numerous thefts and robberies, the bandit Pépé le Moko (Jean Gabin, here at the height of his career) takes refuge in the Kasbah of Algiers, where he enjoys support and protection, while being kept under surveillance by Inspector Slimane. His overwhelming passion for Gaby, a sensual Parisian woman, drives Pépé to leave the casbah and to try in vain to embark for France (just as in ‘Le Quai des brumes’, Jean fails to leave for South America). When his plan fails, Pépé decides to commit suicide before falling into the hands of the police. One of the most famous cult films of French cinema, this is the season of “poetic realism”, partly indebted to American gangster films (“Scarface” by Hawks), but with a hint of romanticism and exoticism reinforced by complex camera movements and rich sound counterpoints. An authentic “modern romantic tragedy” marked by a heavy human defeat and the impossibility of any form of social redemption.