Search - Pepe le Moko [Criterion Collection] on DVD

MPAA Rating: NR Content Advisory: Violence, Adult Situations Movie Release: 1937 DVD Release: 01/07/2003 Format: DVD - Black and White Edition: Dual Layered,Restored/Remastered Audio Tracks: French Subtitles: English SwapaDVD Credits: 1 Number of Discs: 1 Run Time: 1 hrs 34 mins Studio: Criterion Members Wishing: 13 Genres: Drama, Romantic Drama, Melodrama, Gangster Film

Pepe le Moko (Jean Gabin) is a well-known criminal mastermind who eludes the French police by hiding in the Casbah section of Algiers. He knows he is safe in this labyrinthine netherworld, where he is surrounded by his fellow thieves and cutthroats. Police inspector Slimane (Lucas Gridoux), who has developed a grudging respect for Pepe, bides his time, waiting for Pepe to try to leave the Casbah. When Gaby Gould (Mirielle Balin), a Parisian tourist, falls in love with Pepe, the inspector hopes to use this relationship to his advantage. He tells Gaby that Pepe has been killed, knowing that the heartbroken girl will return to Paris -- and that Pepe will risk everything to go after her. The French Pepe le Moko was remade in the US as Algiers, which followed the original so slavishly (except for changing its ending) that the American producers were able to utilize generous amounts of stock footage from the French film. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Jean Gabin - Pepe le Moko
Mireille Balin - Gaby Gould
Line Noro - Ines
Lucas Gridoux - Inspector Slimane
Gabriel Gabrio - Carlos

Julien Duvivier's classic 1937 film Pepe le Moco gets the treatment it so richly deserves from Criterion. The film is presented in its original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.33:1. The French soundtrack is rendered in Dolby Digital Mono. English subtitles are accessible. Supplemental materials include a 1963 interview with the director, clips from a television tribute to actor Jean Gabin, excerpts from a British Film Institute study of the film, a featurette on how the film affected popular French culture, a comparison of the film with the American version of the same story (Algiers), the original theatrical trailer, and an essay by film critic Michael Atkinson. This is the kind of release that has made Criterion one of the premiere names in home video. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide