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Information
- Year
- 1959
- Runtime
- 76 min.
- Director
- Robert Bresson
- Genres
- Crime, Drama
- Rating *
- 7.7
- Votes *
- 13,260
- Checks
- 5,740
- Favs
- 527
- Dislikes
- 51
- Favs/checks
- 9.2% (1:11)
- Favs/dislikes
- 10:1
Top comments
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Siskoid
Robert Bresson's Pickpocket is undoubtedly an influential film, an early example of the criminal without a motive, doing what he does because he can, and because he's convinced himself there's virtue in it, something embraced be later crime drama. Indeed, Martin LaSalle's Michel is on a quest to FIND a motive for his crimes, paying his mother's bills or her caretaker's (played by France's answer to Natalie Portman, Marika Green), but it's never truly convincing. Only in the ironic finish is he "freed" by an actual human connection. But here's the problem. LaSalle is a sleight of hand expert - and consequently, the most interesting part of the film is the pickpocketing choreography that will have you checking your pockets in public places hereafter - but not a professional actor, and while that does support the character's disconnectedness, he walks through the film stone-faced and it all seems very stagey. People moving to marks and reading dialog at a director's command, but as lifeless puppets. But it seems to be the style, because no one much emotes, perhaps as a correction so LaSalle's acting doesn't seem too out of place. 4 years 3 months ago -
AliciaHub
A lead that can't act, a movie that begins by a disclaimer that does not correspond to what is shown (how is he a victim?), a very predictable story, and an over pronunciation of every word that makes it so painful to watch. Why the hell is it ranked so high? 5 years 8 months ago
Friends
Login to see which of your friends have seen this movie!In 20 official lists
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This movie ranks #22 in Roger Ebert's Great Movies
Roger Ebert's Great Movi…
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This movie ranks #26 in The Times's 100 Best French Films
The Times's 100 Best Fre…
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This movie ranks #29 in Cahiers du Cinéma's 100 Films for an Ideal Cinematheque
Cahiers du Cinéma's 100 …
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This movie ranks #55 in Cahiers du Cinéma's Annual Top 10 Lists
Cahiers du Cinéma's Annu…
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This movie ranks #55 in Time Out's The 100 Best French Films
Time Out's The 100 Best …
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This movie ranks #74 in iCheckMovies's 1950s Top 100
iCheckMovies's 1950s Top…
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This movie ranks #89 in TSPDT's 1,000 Greatest Films
TSPDT's 1,000 Greatest F…
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This movie ranks #122 in Anthology Film Archives's Essential Cinema
Anthology Film Archives'…
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This movie ranks #133 in Sight & Sound's The Greatest Films of All Time
Sight & Sound's The Grea…
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This movie ranks #147 in Harvard's Suggested Film Viewing: Narrative Films
Harvard's Suggested Film…
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This movie ranks #228 in Mark Cousins's The Story of Film: An Odyssey
Mark Cousins's The Story…
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This movie ranks #277 in BFI's 360 Classic Feature Films Project
BFI's 360 Classic Featur…
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This movie ranks #342 in 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die
1001 Movies You Must See…
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This movie ranks #355 in The Criterion Collection
The Criterion Collection
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This movie ranks #422 in Amos Vogel's Film as a Subversive Art
Amos Vogel's Film as a S…
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This movie ranks #455 in Jonathan Rosenbaum's Essential Cinema
Jonathan Rosenbaum's Ess…
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This movie ranks #572 in David Thomson's Have You Seen?
David Thomson's Have You…
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This movie ranks #693 in The Guardian's 1000 Films to See Before You Die
The Guardian's 1000 Film…
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This movie ranks #818 in Time Out's 1000 Films to Change Your Life
Time Out's 1000 Films to…
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This movie ranks #993 in Halliwell's Top 1000: The Ultimate Movie Countdown
Halliwell's Top 1000: Th…
993