Jean-Pierre Melville (; born Jean-Pierre Grumbach; 20 October 1917 – 2 August 1973) was a French filmmaker and actor. Among his films are ''

Le Silence de la mer ''Le Silence de la mer'' (, ''The Silence of the Sea'') is a French novel written during the summer of 1941 and published in early 1942 by Jean Bruller under the pseudonym "Vercors". Published secretly in German-occupied Paris, the book quick ...

'' (1949), '' Bob le flambeur'' (1956), ''

Le Doulos ''Le Doulos'' () is a 1962 French crime film written and directed by Jean-Pierre Melville, adapted from the novel of the same name by Pierre Lesou. It was released theatrically as ''The Finger Man'' in the English-speaking world, but all video an ...

'' (1962), '' Le Samouraï'' (1967), '' Army of Shadows'' (1969) and '' Le Cercle Rouge'' (1970). While with the

French Resistance The French Resistance (french: La Résistance) was a collection of organisations that fought the German occupation of France during World War II, Nazi occupation of France and the Collaborationism, collaborationist Vichy France, Vichy régim ...

during World War II, he adopted the pseudonym Melville as a tribute to his favorite American author

Herman Melville Herman Melville ( born Melvill; August 1, 1819 – September 28, 1891) was an American novelist, short story writer, and poet of the American Renaissance period. Among his best-known works are '' Moby-Dick'' (1851); '' Typee'' (1846), a ...

. He kept it as his stage name once the war was over. Spiritual father of the French New Wave, he has influenced new generations of filmmakers across the world.

Life and career

Jean-Pierre Grumbach was born in 1917 in Paris, France, the son of Berthe and Jules Grumbach. His family were

Alsatian Jews The history of the Jews in Alsace is one of the oldest in Europe. It was first attested to in 1165 by Benjamin of Tudela, who wrote about a "large number of learned men" in " Astransbourg"; and it is assumed that it dates back to around the y ...

. After the fall of France in 1940 during World War II, during which he was evacuated from Dunkirk as a soldier in the French Army, Grumbach entered the French Resistance to oppose the German

Nazis Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in N ...

who occupied the country. He adopted the nom de guerre Melville after the American author

, a favourite of his. When he returned from the war, he applied for a license to become an assistant director but was refused. Without this support, he decided to direct his films by his own means, and continued to use Melville as his stage name. He became an independent film-maker and owned his own studio, rue Jenner, in Paris 13ème. He became well known for his minimalist film noir, such as ''

'' (1962), '' Le Samouraï'' (1967) and '' Le Cercle rouge'' (1970), starring major actors such as Alain Delon (probably the definitive "Melvillian" actor),

Jean-Paul Belmondo Jean-Paul Charles Belmondo (; 9 April 19336 September 2021) was a French actor and producer. Initially associated with the New Wave of the 1960s, he was a major French film star for several decades from the 1960s onward. His best known credits ...

and Lino Ventura. Influenced by American cinema, especially gangster films of the 1930s and 1940s, he used accessories such as weapons, clothes (trench coats), and fedora hats, to shape a characteristic look in his movies. Melville ultimately became so identified with the style that ''

The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...

''s Anthony Lane wrote the following about a 2017 retrospective of his films:

This is how you should attend the forthcoming retrospective of Jean-Pierre Melville movies at Film Forum: Tell nobody what you are doing. Even your loved ones—especially your loved ones—must be kept in the dark. If it comes to a choice between smoking and talking, smoke. Dress well but without ostentation. Wear a raincoat, buttoned and belted, regardless of whether there is rain. Any revolver should be kept, until you need it, in the pocket of the coat. Finally, before you leave home, put your hat on. If you don't have a hat, you can't go.

Melville's independence and "reporting" style of film-making (he was one of the first French directors to use real locations regularly) were a major influence on the French New Wave film movement.

Jean-Luc Godard Jean-Luc Godard ( , ; ; 3 December 193013 September 2022) was a French-Swiss film director, screenwriter, and film critic. He rose to prominence as a pioneer of the French New Wave film movement of the 1960s, alongside such filmmakers as Fran ...

used him as a minor character in his seminal New Wave film '' Breathless''. When Godard was having difficulty editing the film, Melville suggested that he just cut directly to the best parts of a shot. Godard was inspired and the film's innovative use of

jump cuts A jump cut is a cut in film editing in which a single continuous sequential shot of a subject is broken into two parts, with a piece of footage being removed in order to render the effect of jumping forward in time. Camera positions of the subj ...

have become part of its fame. In an interview, Melville claimed editing was his favorite part of the filmmaking process along with writing. Although a friend of left-wing icons such as Yves Montand and thought of himself as a communist in the 30's, Melville referred to himself as "an extreme individualist" and "a right-wing anarchist" in terms of politics. In 1963 he was invited as one of the jury at the

13th Berlin International Film Festival The 13th annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from 21 June to 2 July 1963. The Golden Bear was awarded ''ex aequo'' to the Italian film '' Il diavolo'' directed by Gian Luigi Polidoro and Japanese film '' Bushidô zankoku monogata ...

Death

Melville died on 2 August 1973 while dining with writer

Philippe Labro Philippe Labro (born 27 August 1936) is a French author, journalist and film director. He has worked for RTL, '' Paris Match'', TF1 and Antenne 2. He is a laureate of the Prix Interallié, a French literary distinction founded in 1930, whic ...

at the Hôtel PLM Saint-Jacques restaurant in Paris; the cause of death has been variously given as a heart attack or a ruptured aneurysm. He was 55 years old. Melville was then writing his next film, ''Contre-enquête'', a spy thriller for producer Jacques-Éric Strauss with Yves Montand in the lead. Melville apparently wrote the first 200 shots for the film. After Melville's death, Labro took over the project, hoping to finish writing and direct it, but he eventually dropped it to film ''Le hasard et la violence'' (1974), also starring Montand and for producer Strauss.Bertrand Tessier, ''Jean-Pierre Melville le solitaire'', foreword Philippe Labro, Fayard, Paris, 2017

Filmography

As director & writer

As actor

''Code Name Melville''

Produced in 2008, the 76-minute-long feature documentary ''

Code Name Melville ''Code Name Melville'' (original French title: ''Sous le nom de Melville'') is a feature length documentary film about Jean-Pierre Melville, directed by Olivier Bohler and produced by Raphaël Millet for Nocturnes Productions in 2008. Its world pr ...

'' (original French title: ''Sous le nom de Melville'') reveals the importance of Jean-Pierre Melville's personal experience in the French Resistance during World War II to his approach to filmmaking.

References

Footnotes

Sources

* * Eric Breitbart (2006). "Call Me Melville". ''New England Review'' 27:3. pp. 174–183 * Montero, José Francisco, ''Jean-Pierre Melville. Crónicas de un samurái'', Editorial Shangrila, Santander, 2014
Shangrilaediciones.com
* Bertrand Tessier. ''Jean-Pierre Melville: Le solitaire''. Fayard, 2017.

External links

*

via UC Berkeley Media Resources Center
Biography on newwavefilm.com

Jean-Pierre Melville ''World Socialist Web Site
'
Article at Senses of Cinema
{{DEFAULTSORT:Melville, Jean-Pierre 1917 births 1973 deaths 20th-century French male actors 20th-century French screenwriters Alsatian Jews Film directors from Paris French Army personnel of World War II French Jews French film directors French male film actors French male screenwriters Jewish French writers French Resistance members Jews in the French resistance