The notorious Pépé le moko (Jean Gabin, in a truly iconic performance) is a wanted man: women long for him, rivals hope to destroy him, and the law is breathing down his neck at every turn. On the lam in the labyrinthine Casbah of Algiers, Pépé is safe from the clutches of the police--until a Parisian playgirl compels him to risk his life and leave its confines once and for all. One of the most influential films of the 20th century and a landmark of French poetic realism, Julien Duvivier's Pépé le moko is presented here in its full-length version.
Supplements
1962 French television interview with director Julien Duvivier
Excerpts from the 1978 television documentary Remembering Jean Gabin
Excerpts from Ginette Vincendeau's BFI Classics study of Pépé le Moko, addressing the historical background of the film's setting and the French crime novel genre
A study of the lasting influence of Pépé on popular culture, including a special video comparison between Pépe and the 1938 U.S. remake Algiers
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