Arquivo

A free re-reading of the classic Bob the Gambler (Bob le Flambeur, 1955), by Frenchman Jean-Pierre Melville (1917-1973), the forerunner of the ‘nouvelle vague’, a film about gangsters venerated by scores of filmgoers. The story tells of an American quack, middle-aged, alcoholic, and decadent, with a long penal history. He lives on the French Riviera in the midst of assassins, prostitutes from Eastern Europe, police informers, and pimps. A compulsive gambler, a dandy and a pathological liar, he is beset by a veritable avalanche of ill-luck. He can find comfort only in heavy drugs. When he is at the bottom of the well, a friend suggests a fabulous ruse. The theme song is standard Frank Sinatra: ‘The Good Life’, sung by Bono Vox, vocalist for the U2.