Comptes à rebours

Good gangster revenge film, with the likes of Serge Reggianni, André Pousse and Marcel Bozuffi, the two heavies of French move industry; only Michel Constantin is missing. It is tense, violent, rough and pretty well made and played. Roger Pigaut gives here is best movie as director. It is not a comedy, as was TROIS MILLIARDS SANS ASCENSEUR for instance. Serge Reggianni is impressive as the revengeful gangster. Charles Vanel has only a supporting character, so has Simone Signoret. You won't be deceived by this crime film, taut, dark, brutal, very in fashion of the early seventies, far better than what it could have been eight or ten years later. Michel Bouquet, after his nearly similar role in UN CONDE, plays a revengeful cop. Jean Desailly, after L'ARDOISE, plays another supporting character in a revengeful rampage, bloody odyssey scheme. In L'ARDOISE, he was also accused to have denounced the hero to the police, remember? Nearly exactly the same role here !!! Concerning Bob Asklof, the hired killer, he tortured here Charles Vanel ; and he also tortured Annie Cordy in LE MATAF, two years later. Vanel and Signoret are the most moving characters of this feature, unusual and endearing. I also crave for the hired killer, the angel face gunman , ruthless, cruel, who however likes kids show with puppets, and cats. As Alain Delon in SCORPIO.

Actor Roger Pigaut made a handful of films: the first one, "le cerf-volant du bout du monde" , was aimed at the children's market :it is one of the most successful film of its kind ;helped by Henri Alekan's splendid cinematography and his young actors' spontaneity.

But his other works are thrillers : the first one, "comptes à rebours " (= countdown) has a dream of a cast, with the creme de la creme of French actors (check the cast and credits) ; the outline may seem trite, nay simplistic: the gangster who was betrayed by one of his accomplices (he does not know who) and was jailed for ten years ;but actually,the screenplay is more complicated;it takes 35 minutes before you know the ex-convict's position : it's told by Léa (Signoret) ,and without a single flashback at that ; but the key to the mystery is given by an one-eyed Michel Bouquet; some characters who might seem insignificant (Moreau,Dessailly) actually play a prominent part in the avenger 's (Reggiani) story .

He would continue in that vein, with some of the actors of this film (Bouquet, Bozzuffi) in "trois milliards sans ascenceur".

Directing is nervy and makes up for the numerous unlikelihoods of the script ; there are good scenes :the elevator , the card play, the train, the killer "Narcisse" watching a Punch and Judy show among kids.

Roger Pigaut was first an actor.His most memorable part was in Autant-Lara's "Douce" (1942).But he is probably best remembered for his part of villain D'Escrainville in the two final episodes of the Angélique saga.

He had made two films before ,one of them -which has got a rather good reputation- was "Le Cerf -Volant du Bout du Monde" probably influenced by previous works by Albert Lamorisse ("le Ballon Rouge" )

"Comptes à rebours" is the umpteenth story of the man who has just been released from jail and who wants to take revenge on his accomplices who betrayed him (only one of them did it actually,but as he does not know who...) The interest lies in the cast, a real who's who of the actors of the era :Serge Reggiani as the lead,Michel Bouquet,Simone Signoret,Jeanne Moreau,Charles Vanel...

pretty cool and passionate french crime movie of the early 70s. the hero is a bit clumsy but that's what makes him so convincing. and simone signoret is great as ever (nearly as good as in her best ever les granges brulees). but what i like most is the atmosphere between people. if you like movies about loyalty, love and trust, you're right with this completely convincing crime-tragedy.