CLASSE TOUS RISQUES
When Claude Sautet began, with “Classe tous risques”
Cannes Classics goes back to the origins of Claude Sautet‘s career. In the late 1950s, the French director made his second feature film, Classe tous risques, with Lino Ventura and the young Jean-Paul Belmondo. hile the film received positive reviews, it didn’t achieve significant success at the box office. Nevertheless, it laid the foundation for a filmography that now includes essential works.
Abel Davos (Lino Ventura), a gangster who has taken refuge in Italy with his family, decides to return to France after one final heist, despite the risk of facing the death penalty. A confrontation with customs officers results in the death of his wife and his accomplice. To help him, his friends in Paris send him a trustworthy man named Éric Stark (Jean-Paul Belmondo).
Released in Parisian cinemas in March 1960, “Classe tous risques” came out one week after “Breathless.” The triumph of Godard’s masterpiece led to modest success at the box office for Claude Sautet’s film. The 4K re-release of this film noir sheds light on the duo formed by Lino Ventura and Jean-Paul Belmondo, two actors at different stages of their careers, for a touching and daring first collaboration.
Classe tous risques is adapted from the novel of the same name by José Giovanni. The author and former gangster worked with Claude Sautet on the screenplay and dialogue of the film. This initial transition from literature to cinema allowed the filmmaker to acquire the confidence and professionalism of an established director. Ten years later, he adapted another novel for the big screen, Les Choses de la vie, which was presented in Competition in 1970.
A presentation by TF1 Studio. New 4K HDR Dolby Vision restored version by TF1 Studio, with the support of CNC, Coin de Mire Cinéma, and OCS, using the original negative and French sound negative. Digital and photochemical work carried out by Éclair Classics laboratory, Paris/Bologna.
