Directed by:
Robert BressonScreenplay:
Robert BressonCinematography:
Léonce-Henri BurelVOD (3)
Plots(1)
Inspired by Fyodor Dostoyevsky's classic novel CRIME AND PUNISHMENT, Robert Bresson's PICKPOCKET tells the story of a man whose attraction to crime threatens to condemn him forever--spiritually as well as physically. Michel (Martin LaSalle), a young thief, is caught one afternoon, breaking his dying mother's heart and shocking his friends. Fortunately for Michel, the police inspector (Jean Pélégri) is unable to prosecute him, but the implications nonetheless sour Michel's once firm social standing. Trying to straighten his ways, Michel is again drawn to the criminal world, where under the tutelage of a master pickpocket he reverts back to thievery. All the while, his conscience nags at him, in the memory of his deceased mother as well as in the presence of Jeanne (Marika Green), a beautiful young woman who shows compassion toward the troubled Michel. Eventually, Michel's lucky streak ends, forcing him to find redemption in the most ironic of circumstances. Using his now-legendary simplistic storytelling style, Bresson is able to elevate his story to a supremely spiritual state, making for a stunningly powerful viewing experience. Delivering their lines slowly and somberly, the actors give the audience even more time for inner reflection, resulting in a cinematic masterwork. (official distributor synopsis)
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Reviews (3)
A well-made film with an interesting form and an immensely great sense of detail, but unfortunately, that doesn't change the fact that the film didn't really give me anything and I truly just enjoyed the individual images, which to some extent repeated themselves. It's not an entertaining film, but still, it does say something to you.
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The only thing he believed in was God. For three whole minutes. He now no longer believes. He doesn’t believe that he would interest anyone or that anyone would take him into consideration. Therefore, he steals. He feels that he is part of the indifferent world around him only when his hand, as if independent of the rest of his body, rummages through other people’s pockets. He belongs somewhere; he’s doing something. He is living...in the same mechanised substitute for life as everyone else. Just as in the case of the earlier A Man Escaped, it’s possible to imagine how Hollywood would have taken the plot of Pickpocket and turned it into a suspenseful thriller. Bresson chose the opposite route in the form of an elliptical narrative absolutely devoid of drama. There is no interest in the action, which is intentionally opaque and shot without excitement, like the rest of the film. The commentary, rationalised this time by Michel’s letter, is offered as the most convenient connection to the protagonist’s mental processes. However, we basically do not learn more from it than what we see for ourselves. Pickpocket isn’t exactly an accessible film (which is even more true of it than of Diary of a Country Priest and A Man Escaped). As such, however, it forces you to dig more deeply beneath the surface. It’s worth it for the feeling that you got close. 75%
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Martin LaSalle and his rendering of Michel's suffering, based on popular books such as "The Sorrows of Young Werther" or "The Confusions of Young Törless," transfers real depression even into the soul of the casual viewer who cannot defend himself.
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Gallery (21)
Photo © MK2
![Pickpocket - Photos](http://image.pmgstatic.com/cache/resized/w663/files/images/film/photos/163/745/163745893_0964b7.jpg)
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