125 rue Montmartre (1959) - film review

Pascal scrapes a modest living selling newspapers in the streets of Paris.  Although a little rough around the edges, he has a good heart, so that when he sees a man jump into the Seine, he does not hesitate to come to his aid.   The suicide, Didier, is on the brink of a nervous breakdown after his wife Catherine’s attempts to seize his fortune from him.  Pascal is ready to do anything to help the unfortunate man and agrees to go to his house to collect some money.  But, on entering the house, Pascal disturbs Catherine, who immediately calls the police.  When the police arrive, the body of a dead man is found in the house.  The victim is Catherine’s husband and she is adamant that Pascal murdered him.  When he sees the body, Pascal is surprised to find that the dead man is not Didier, the man he saved from drowning, but someone he has never met...
© Willems Henri (Brussels, Belgium)

Lino Ventura gives one of his legendary tour de force performances in this intricate mystery-thriller, a compelling film which appears to have been influenced by both American film noir and the work of Alfred Hitchcock.  This is one of the better films to be directed by Gilles Grangier, who is perhaps best known for his light-hearted comedies – such as Le Gentleman d’Epsom (1962) and La Cuisine au beurre (1963) - although his crime dramas probably have greater merit. 

Well scripted and stylishly shot, 125 rue Montmartre also benefits from having a high calibre cast.  In addition to the aforementioned Ventura, there is a host of distinguished French actors, including Andréa Parisy and Jean Desailly.  The film is based on a novel by André Gillois, whose real name is Maurice Diamant-Berger – he was the brother of the eminent French filmmaker and producer Henri Diamant-Berger.

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