StunnaKrypto Self-important, over-dramatic, uninspired.

Ameriatch One of the best films i have seen

Bessie Smyth Great story, amazing characters, superb action, enthralling cinematography. Yes, this is something I am glad I spent money on.

Raymond Sierra The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

gavin6942 Michel (Martin LaSalle, the French equivalent of Montgomery Clift) is released from jail after serving a sentence for thievery. His mother dies and he resorts to pickpocketing as a means of survival.I freely confess I was not very familiar with the work of Robert Bresson. By which I mean I had not seen a single thing he did. This month (July 2013) that will be rectified, and this was the perfect place to start. Whether or not "Pickpocket" is a masterpiece is unclear, but it is Bresson's best-known work, and beautifully shot.I love how this film inspired Paul Schrader, who then used a scene not once but twice in his own work. That is pretty powerful. The film as a whole is great, with the focus on the hands and the use of great black and white (apparently Bresson's preferred medium, as he used it through the 1960s if not later).

Jackson Booth-Millard From director Robert Bresson (Au Hasard Balthazar, L'Argent), the title of this film, featured in the book 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die as the one of the entries, was distinctive and one that sounded worth watching, I was hoping for the best for this French film. Basically in Paris, France lives Michel (Martin LaSalle), a young man who finds an interest and a skill in picking pockets, i.e. slipping his fingers into or sneaking out wallets and purses from people's pockets. He is caught quickly the first time he does it a horse racing venue, but the Inspector (Jean Pélégri) released him because of lack of evidence, and he is allowed to take the money, and soon after this he becomes part of a group of pickpockets who teach him more skills. Michel visits his Mother (Dolly Scal), and he also meets Jeanne (Marika Green), who he begs to visit more often, and he gets the chance to get to know her better while on a date with his friend tagging Jacques (Pierre Leymarie) along, but he leaves this after he steals a watch at the carnival. He wants to clean up some of his guilt by visiting the Inspector and showing him a book he got about professional pickpocketing, but the police officer hardly glances at it, but he returns to his apartment and realises the Inspector was shunning him while he was there so that the police could search his apartment, but they failed to find the stolen stash of cash. Michel's Mother dies, and he attends the funeral with Jeanne, and after it the Inspector tells him that before she died she had some money stolen from her, he suspects her son did it, but he does not arrest him and he leaves the country to live an honest life without crime, but he throws all his money away spending on booze and women. Eventually Michel returns to France, and to Jeanne who he is shocked to find out mothered a child with Jacque but they did not marry and she has been left with nothing, so he starts working again to support her and the child, but he gives into temptation and is back to pickpocketing. In the end Michel is arrested and jailed with a confirmed theft by pickpocketing, and it is in prison that he realises with her regular visits that he does not truly love Jeanne. Also starring Kassagi as Accomplice, Pierre Étaix as Accomplice and César Gattegno as Detective. Leading actor LaSalle does well using hardly any facial expression at all to make an intriguing character that you unsure whether to be sympathetic or concerned for, I will admit first off that I sort of dozed or did not pay full attention to midway through, by I understood just about what was going on, and it was certainly an interesting enough crime drama. Very good!

kosmasp And I'm not talking about any loot, but about the audience. You will either love or loathe the movie. And while comparisons to Taxi Driver and other "loner movies" might be right, it's also true that they are far better written (and in Taxi Driver also with "real actors", in contrast to the non-professionals at hand here).If that is something that might not put you off, than maybe a few weird scenes might do the trick. The narrative seems to be all over the place, an unlikeable "hero" and pretentious script writing. And still through all the flaws, there are a few good moments in between. The existential questions it raises, but also the wry humour in places. Though not as solid as (I) expected, it still has a few points to make, through all the flaws it has.

Nazi_Fighter_David In his dismissal determination to keep out elements often thought fundamental to the medium—spectacle, drama, performance— Bresson has followed an incomparable personal vision of the world that stays consistent whatever the nature of his subject matter...In "Pickpocket," a petty thief understands life's mystery only when his conventional wisdom is violently shaken and embraces humanity through his newfound love… Most notable, however, is not the emphasis upon redemption attained through communication and self-sacrifice, but the high-purity of Bresson's style...The camera keeps out pictorial beauty to create an abstract timeless world through the detached, detailed observation of hands, faces, and objects; natural sounds rather than music to satisfy the need… In thus rejecting conventional realism and characterization, Bresson manifested a fascination not with human psychology but with the capacity of the soul to survive in a world of pain, disbelieve, and restriction...