Two Men in Town
Two Men in Town
NR | 12 November 1973 (USA)
Two Men in Town Trailers

A former bank robber is released after 10 years in prison. He gets help from a social-worker, but gets harassed by an old cop from his past.

Reviews
Doomtomylo a film so unique, intoxicating and bizarre that it not only demands another viewing, but is also forgivable as a satirical comedy where the jokes eventually take the back seat.
Humbersi The first must-see film of the year.
Sameer Callahan It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.
Marva-nova Amazing worth wacthing. So good. Biased but well made with many good points.
Claudio Carvalho "Deux hommes dans la ville", a.k.a. "Two Men in Town", is a corny propaganda against death penalty in France based on an updated version of Les Misérables by Victor Hugo. Produced by Alain Delon and with the great Jean Gabin and Alain Delon in the lead roles, the film wants to show injustices in the French justice system, but it is absolutely manipulative. Alain Delon performs the likable Gino Strabliggi, a modern version of Jean Valjean, and Michel Bouquet performs the nasty Chief Inspector Goitreau, a modern version of Inspector Javert. The result is a good film with questionable intentions. The beauty of Mimsy Farmer is another attraction of this film. My vote is six.Title (Brazil): "Dois Homens Contra uma Cidade" ("Two Men against a City")
Kirpianuscus It represents the ash after its final credits. last meet between Gabin and Delon on screen, it is a film inspiring, for an old man like me, nostalgia. because it seems a puzzle with familiar pieces. simple. but seductive. dramatic. for the nuances. a story about second chance, justice and sins. one of films for a precise target. because it is one of keys to an universe of cinema who seems, for many reasons, lost today.
MartinHafer This is an interesting film in structure, as the main conflict doesn't even present itself until almost 40 minutes into the film. Up until then, it's a very nice story about an ex-con (Alain Delon) and his good friend--a social worker who befriended him in prison and has worked to help rehabilitate him (Jean Gabin). However, even though Delon is doing a great job on his parole (even after tragedy strikes)and is living an honest life, an old cop who arrested him a decade earlier has decided that it's his mission to PROVE that Delon didn't change and is just another con waiting to show his true colors! And so, doggedly, the cop seems determined to push Delon until he forces his to turn bad.While the parallels are not perfect and the setting has been updated to modern France, this sure seemed like a reworking of the classic Victor Hugo story "Les Misérables". Like the leading man from the novel, Jean Valjean, Delon's character has changed after leaving prison and is committed to doing right. And, like Javert, the cop who suddenly enters his life will stop at nothing to prove that a man like Delon CAN'T change despite all appearances to the contrary. So, the cop harasses the man's employer, his girlfriend...any one and everyone. He brings Delon in for interrogations and pushes the man unmercifully--so much so that you assume sooner or later Delon will snap. What happens next is a bit of a shock--and makes for an exciting finale and a very compelling film.It's interesting, by the way, that the bad cop is not the only thing in the system that conspires to keep criminals criminals. Other than Gabin, the rest of the prison officials in the film seem like reactionaries--who unintentionally perpetuate the problems through their stupidity. While this is somewhat of an over-simplification, I like this angle, as prison officials often do make the problems worse (I used to work with the prison system like Gabin's character and was amazed at how corrupt or dumb some of these men were--including come guards who were simply sadists). It's a novel approach (aside from the Hugo novel) and made the film quite compelling. Plus, it humanized Delon so much that you hurt for him and really were rooting for him throughout the film.
Camera Obscura TWO AGAINST THE LAW (José Giovanni - France/Italy 1973).Alain Delon is former safe-cracker Gino Strabliggi, who is released from prison after mediation by prison reformer Germain Cazeneuve (Gabin). Banned from Paris by statute, Gino tries to make a new start in Montpellier, in the south of France, where he finds honest work as a printer and a new love in the form of Lucie (Mimsy Farmer). The vengeful policeman inspector Javert (Michel Bouquet), who arrested Gino in Paris, pursues him to Montpellier and harasses him, his employer and his new girlfriend. Gino, who desperately tries to straighten his life, is increasingly pushed to breaking point. A pretty much unknown Gérard Depardieu also has a small part (only one scene actually) as a young ambitious gangster who tries to intimidate Gino early on in the film.The whole plot is much too obvious and bears little surprises. The film begins well enough but early on, it's clear Gino is gonna snap at some point. The middle part is slowly paced and - quite simply - boring. In the end, with the court scene and a dramatic ending, the film comes back to life in a way, but that came a little too late for me. Gabin and Delon carry this a long way, with Gabin more world-weary than ever, but he seems just as tired as everybody in the film. But he delivers and - as always - remains fascinating to watch. Delon is ultra slick, handsome and cool, especially for a ex-convict, but he's not given much material to shine. In one small scene, when he is summoned to keep the music down by the neighbours in his Montpellier apartment, he only needs his body language to intimidate. As far as French actors are concerned, he remains the ultimate example of sophisticated coolness.Corsican born director Jose Giovanni was on death row himself shortly after World War II, and was pardoned by the French president. Obviously this story is a cause celèbre the director, but his attack on the French justice system and the death penalty is heavy-handed and obvious in the extreme. After a while, with Gabin's voice-over hammering home the director's convictions, I couldn't care less about Gino's fate. The much praised score by Philipe Sarde comes across as old fashioned and overly clammy now, not much of a recommendation as far as I'm concerned. This could have been much better, but it's of minor interest for Delon or Gabin fans at best.Camera Obscura --- 5/10