Adieu l'ami (1968)
Directed by Jean Herman

Film Review

Two of the biggest screen icons of the 1960s - Alain Delon and Charles Bronson - join forces in this stylish French thriller which, despite some glaring plot weaknesses, isn't a bad example of its genre.  The film was directed by Jean Herman, who subsequently worked with Delon on a less well-known thriller Jeff (1969). Adieu l'ami was Herman's second feature as a director; previously he had directed Danielle Darrieux in the quirky comedy Le Dimanche de la vie (1967), which could hardly be more different. Although Herman was a capable filmmaker, he showed more talent as a screenwriter and it was in this capacity that he made a more substantial contribution to the policier genre, through such films as Georges Lautner's Flic ou voyou (1979), Claude Miller's Garde à vue (1981) and Yves Boisset's Canicule (1984). He also wrote several novels under his pseuodnym Jean Vautrin.

Adieu l'ami has the elements of the classic gangster movie but, despite a solid plot and its slick mise-en-scène, it pales in comparison with similar films directed by Jean-Pierre Melville and Jacques Deray around this time (the former's Le Cercle rouge (1970) is a far superior heist movie). As in Melville's films, the criminal protagonists are shown to be morally superior to their police pursuers, the sense of honour shown by the former contrasting with the conniving duplicity of the latter. Delon and Bronson work together surprisingly well (there is no apparent clash of egos) and their on-screen rapport is perhaps the film's strongest suit.  Their gripping performances make up for a fairly lacklustre script which relies too much on plot contrivance and fails to develop the secondary characters convincingly. Even an actress as talented as Brigitte Fossey fails to prevent her character from coming across as weak and unsympathetic. Shot through with plot holes as it is, Adieu l'ami still manages to be a compelling and highly entertaining thriller.

Film Synopsis

Dino Barran and Franz Popp are two veterans of the war in Algeria who hope to embark on a new life upon their arrival in the French port of Marseille.  Not long after they have gone their separate ways, Dino meets a strange young woman who enlists his help in an unlikely scheme, which involves returning some stolen bonds to the basement vault in the company she works for.  On the agreed night, Dino is surprised to find that an enormous quantity of bank notes has recently been placed in the safe - money that is intended as wages for the company's staff.  Franz then appears unexpectedly.  The two former friends take turns trying to open the safe and agree that whoever succeeds will decide what to do with the money.  In the process, the two men manage to get themselves locked in the vault, and after they have freed themselves they find a guard has been shot dead with Dino's own gun.  Something is seriously amiss...