KINONIK in association with SPACE GALLERY

~ KinoNoir ~

Jules Dassin’s RIFIFI (1958), (Du Rififi chez les hommes), FEBRUARY 11,  2019  7 PM

Blacklisted in Hollywood, the talented Jules Dassin (The Naked City, Brute Force) moved to Europe, where he directed Rififi, a dark, disturbing film with an extended, nearly silent heist segment lasting 35 minutes. The pacing is assured, the tension palpable. Jean Servais does a fine turn as grim-faced, gang-leader Tony. Inevitably, loose lips derail the crime, and rival criminals enter the scene. The criminal clans clash, and the body count grows. In the midst of the crime and carnage, Dassin lingers on the marginalized and abused girlfriends and wives, undercutting concepts of criminal nobility. Dassin seals the movie’s greatness with Tony’s final sojourn. Bleeding profusely, he drives his rescued 5-year-old nephew home through the streets of Paris. As he careens wildly, the cowboy-hatted boy jumps from back seat to front seat in the speeding convertible, all while shooting his toy six-shooter – an unnerving end to a tough film.

This is the second film in a monthly series of film noir classics every second Monday at SPACE. Future films include Double Indemnity, Sunset Boulevard, Out of the Past, The Searchers, and White Heat.
.
This event will feature a post-film conversation with Juris Ubans, Professor Emeritus, University of Southern Maine.

The film series KinoNoir is a presentation of Kinonik in partnership with SPACE. It is funded by the Maine Humanities Council.