Le samouraï

1967, Movie, 1h 45min

In a career-defining performance, Alain Delon plays Jef Costello, a contract killer with samurai instincts. After carrying out a flawlessly planned hit, Jef finds himself caught between a persistent police investigator and a ruthless employer, and not even his armor of fedora and trench coat can protect him. An elegantly stylized masterpiece of cool by maverick director Jean‑Pierre Melville, LE SAMOURAÏ is a razor-sharp cocktail of 1940s American gangster cinema and 1960s French pop culture—with a liberal dose of Japanese lone-warrior mythology.

Country: Italy,France

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Ratings

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IMDb rating

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8.0

Critic rating

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9.0

Reviews

Critic Kim Newman

rated

...he most ruthlessly effective of Melville's reinterpretations of the dark world of Hollywood's gangster noirs of the 30s and 40s.

Read full review at Empire

Critic Marjorie Baumgarten

rated

...the work of one of the film world's great directors working at his expressive peak.

Read full review at The Austin Chronicle

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Frequently asked questions

What is Le samouraï about? Toggle content

A lone and calculating hitman, Jef Costello, is hired to take out a nightclub owner. However, things take a turn for the worse when he's spotted by a pianist at the club and becomes embroiled in a complex web of intrigue as he tries to outsmart the police and his employer.

Where can I stream Le samouraï? Toggle content

You can stream Le samouraï on: Apple TV

What movies are similar to Le samouraï? Toggle content

Some movies that have similar genres and were produced around the same time as Le samouraï include The French Connection, Branded to Kill, Dirty Harry, The Getaway, In the Heat of the Night, The Last House on the Left.

When was Le samouraï released in theaters? Toggle content

Le samouraï was released in theaters on November 26, 1971.

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