Click here to copy URL

The Red Circle

Le cercle rouge

1970

Jean-Pierre Melville

Alain Delon, Bourvil, Gian Maria Volonté, Yves Montand ...

7.5

4,352

Film noir. Mystery Master thief Corey is fresh out of prison. But instead of toeing the line of law-abiding freedom, he finds his steps leading back to the shadowy world of crime, crossing paths with a notorious escapee and an alcoholic ex-cop. As the unlikely trio plots a heist against impossible odds, their trail is pursued by a relentless inspector, and fate begins to seal their destinies.

	Author	Review
United Kingdom	Peter Bradshaw The Guardian	"Melville’s terrific noir looks even cooler now (...) A treat (…) Rating: ★★★★★ (out of 5)"	POS
United Kingdom	Tom Dawson BBC	"One can still savour Melville's leisurely storytelling, the skilfully pared-down visual style, and the calmly understated central performances (…) Rating: ★★★★ (out of 5)"	POS
United States	Bill Stamets Chicago Reader	"Key action points are edited with finesse, but the denouement, with its dutiful hail of gunfire, is heartless and mechanical"	NEU
United Kingdom	David Parkinson Empire	"A classic cornerstone of the heist genre from a master of the nouvelle vague (…) Rating: ★★★★ (out of 5)"	POS
United States	Vincent Canby The New York Times	"[It] will be of interest primarily to those who already know Melville's work. It may baffle anyone coming upon him for the first time"	NEU
United States	Roger Ebert rogerebert.com	"There is one cool, understated scene after another (…) Rating: ★★★★ (out of 4)"	POS
United States	Chris Cabin Slant	"A seminal work in the advancement of the crime film (…) Rating: ★★★★ (out of 5)"	POS

Return to movie

We encourage you to check the reviews' original sources. Intellectual property rights of these reviews belong to their authors and/or the correspondent media from which they have been extracted. If you'd like to help us to add more reviews to your favorite movies, just send us a message.