A group of professionals with their own unique skill sets assemble in Paris to pull of a big heist only for the plan to fall apart when one of them betrays the team for their own selfish desires. Sound familiar? It should, it is a LOT like Ronin. I have no doubt that Frankenheimer and Mamet took a lot of inspiration from this movie 43 years down the line. I think I even recognized some of the locations.62 years is a life time in Metropolitan terms, and the Paris you see in Rififi is far, far removed from the litter-strewn, graffiti covered, overcrowded dump of a city that exists today. For this alone it is worth a watch but the slow burn of the group coming together, meticulously planning their heist, and the 32-minute silence of the heist itself is extremely suspenseful stuff. It loses a little in the final act though, which I do believe could have been about 8 minutes tighter.Jules Dassin made Rififi after being exiled from the US and blacklisted as a Communist (they were not ALL "good old days") and the movie is as masterfully executed as the heist it portrays, which is kind of odd as Dassin's own character in the movie is the reason why it goes sour. The moody black and white photography, real world streets, noir atmosphere make the film a classic in its own right. It's just a shame that not many people would give a chance due to being subtitled.

Rififi holds up extremely well for over 50 years. I just need to get something off my chest. If Jules Dassin didn't acknowledge the influence of John Huston's Asphalt Jungle, shame on him. Many film viewers consider Rififi the mother of the heist film, but that's giving Mr. Dassin more credit than he deserves. He does of course deserve credit for a wonderfully made movie, and especially for detailing the plan and action of the caper, using about 30 minutes of film time. Hollywood film makers might not have allowed that, but as a French film audiences are more patient. See the wonderful films of Robert Bresson. I do think, however, that the Dassin picture is a landmark in humanizing the criminal enterprise. Whether that's good or bad is arguable. It certainly reached out to influence the broad tolerance that we have for projects like The Sopranos. It was also a powerful enough film to change public attitude about the unfair treatment given Mr. Dassin and others black listed by the Hollywood establishment.

Nobody does noir like the French. They invented it, and although American and Japanese directors have made exceptional entries in the genre, the French still do it best. For evidence, I present exhibit A, Rififi, one of the greatest gangster/heist movies ever made. Aging gangster Tony, just out of prison, gathers his friends for one last job; cracking the safe at Paris's finest jeweler. It will be the most ambitious job of their careers, with an incredible payoff. And it doesn't end with the heist either. When rival gangster Pierre realizes what they've done and decides he wants in, everything they've accomplished is put in jeopardy.Rififi doesn't waste much time establishing the characters or the setup. Back-story isn't a major concern here. Each man has his own life and personality, but the important thing is that when it comes to business, Tony, Jo, Mario and Caesar are dead serious. They know the rules, and the stakes, and are the absolute best at what they do. Their preparations are complex and painstaking. Casing the joint, memorizing the opening times of the surrounding businesses, finding a way to defeat the alarm system, all are done with the utmost care.All of this leads up to one of the tensest scenes in all cinema; the heist itself. Over half an hour, with no music or dialogue, only the (very quiet) sounds of the men at work. And what work it is. Watching these four men chisel their way through the roof, disable the alarm, and crack the safe is like watching Michelangelo sculpt or Arnold Palmer play a round of golf. It is pure precision, with no margin for even the slightest error. And what creativity they bring to their trade! I have never seen such ingenious uses for a tube of caulk or an umbrella.Most films would have difficulty going this long without sound, but here the silence is an asset. The lack of sound underscores the fact that their work relies on near-total silence. Because there is no music or other background noise, we are keenly aware of every clink of the hammer, every rattle of loose concrete, and the fall of every footstep. The silence creates tension more effectively than any ominous music could. And all the while the clock is, quite literally, ticking. Time itself is their enemy. If Rififi ended with the successful conclusion of their daring burglary, it would be a very good movie. But it does not satisfy itself with a simple happy ending. As in so many of the best noirs, the second half tells how the best plans go awry, and everything begins to fall apart. A minor act of carelessness makes them targets of the most ruthless crime boss in Paris. The body count rises alarmingly, and the bad guys soon gain what is arguably the ultimate leverage.The last act is a masterwork or growing tension, sudden reversals, and hard decisions. And the final scene, which I will not give away, is probably the best of all. The pounding, ominous music, the rapid series of cuts, and the gravity of the situation contrast with the innocence of a young child in a way that is simply incredible. Rififi is fully equal- and perhaps superior to- Chinatown, The Big Heat, or Le Samourai. If you are a fan of classic noir, I highly urge to see this film.

Greetings again from the darkness. This classic French film is often referred to as the birth of the heist film. Former blacklisted US director Jules Dassin delivers a tense and unique film with terrific atmosphere, blending Film Noir with the French New Wave.One of the more unusual aspects of the film is that the actual heist is Act II, not Act III - which actually involves a kidnapping and a quest for vengeance. It's easy to view the two Ocean's Eleven films as remakes of this one, and its influence on Stanley Kubrick's The Killing, as well as Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs (the table scene), are fun to analyze.Almost 60 years later, most film classes still discuss the nearly 30 minute heist sequence that involves no dialogue or music (not counting an inadvertent piano key). The teamwork and stress of this sequence is enthralling and worth watching a few times. We somehow find ourselves pulling for these bad guys (criminals, thugs, gangsters, hoods, crooks). I call this the good-bad guy vs bad-bad guy approach.The good-bad guys are played by Jean Servais (Tony), Carl Michner (Jo), Robert Manuel (Mario), and the director Jules Dussin (Caeser, the Italian safecracker). The bad-bad guys (worthy of hissing) are led by Marcel Lupovici (Grutter) who is simply mean to everyone.Paris streets play a huge role, as does the jewelry store set and the simple sound effects that accompany the heist. Also enjoyable is the "casing the place" sequence as the crew plans their process. So many pieces come together to keep this one as a well-deserved entry to the classic film canon.