Pépé le Moko
Julien Duvivier’s Pépé le Moko is perhaps the earliest example of film noir. The 1937 French film teems with complex characters and dark set pieces, telling a story of crime and love. More than that, however, Pépé le Moko is a film about being away from where one feels most comfortable or where one feels one belongs. This is shown especially in the final frames of the motion picture.
Jean Gabin is tremendous as the titular character. He’s a thief, a good one, and he’s been forced to live out his days in the Kasbah in Algiers. The police are hunting him perpetually and the Kasbah is the only place he can find safety. The swirling cultures, labyrinthine streets, and confusion is enough to throw the police off of his scent. Pépé le Moko is a suave, sophisticated thief; he’s the type of guy that might be played by George Clooney in a modern context.
Pépé le Moko is well-liked in the Kasbah and gains protection from various friends and family members. He hides out in the homes of women he beds and is endlessly pursued by the likeable Inspecteur Slimane (Lucas Gridoux). Gaby Gould (Mirielle Balin), a Parisian playgirl who reminds Pépé le Moko of home, is used as a lure to bring him to the city and out into the open where he can be captured. The thief finds the prize of returning to the “civilization” of Paris overwhelming and, tired of the Kasbah, is prepared to risk it all.
Duvivier’s motion picture is lavish, exotic, and imposing. It is somewhat like Casablanca in its presentation, offering smooth character types amid an exotic and exciting backdrop. Romance, intrigue, adventure, and thrills abound but Duvivier coats it with delicious tension, regret, and pain. Pépé le Moko struggles, especially with the demise of Pierrot (Gilbert Gil), and shows his humanness as well, giving his character and the movie more complexity and depth.
Pépé le Moko is shown as a tremendously flawed character. He is a womanizer, a thief, and possesses a significant temper. He is also a drinker. At the same time, Pépé le Moko is respected and those around him have banded together in his protection. Many a “good thief” archetype was doubtlessly based upon Gabin’s character, with elements such as the neat suit and clean-cut look utilized in similar roles to this very day.
Film noir became what it was because of the atmosphere of the pictures. Typically crime-themed, the film noir genre has been mined to this day with the likes of Sin City paying homage to some of the greater pieces in the genre. Duvivier’s Pépé le Moko stands as a bold sort of bridge between the darker noir of the American crime genre and the poetic romanticism of much Parisian art. This is a very romantic picture in the purest sense of the word: it is about the pursuit of want, desire, and need.
Without giving anything away, it is that final scene of the ship sailing away and of the protagonist’s actions that really cements the philosophy of Duvivier’s piece. That feeling of lost opportunity, of another missed moment, is too much to bear. It colours Pépé le Moko with a shade of grey and layers the character with mystery and darkness.
Duvivier’s Pépé le Moko really is a remarkable motion picture. It is so much more than just a heist or crime saga set in an exotic locale. It is a story of longing, darkness, romance, and complexity. Required viewing for anyone with even a passing interest in noir, Pépé le Moko is a masterpiece.
