Trivia / Le Samouraï

• Completely Different Title: An English-dubbed version retitled The Godson (presumably to capitalize on The Godfather's success) was released in the US in the 1970s. The movie was also retitled Cop Out in some markets.
• Creator Couple: This was the first film for Alain Delon's wife, Nathalie Sand. He filed for divorce after the film ended production; it became official in February 1969 and she was granted custody of their son, Anthony.
• Follow the Leader: Because of its status as the Trope Codifier for many crime and neo-noir works, there have been countless movies that have been inspired by this film such as The Driver, Taxi Driver, The Killer (1989), The Professional, Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai, The American and Drive (2011). Even the song "Beautiful Killer'' by Madonna is specifically inspired by the film.
• One-Take Wonder: Jean-Pierre Melville worried how he was going to shoot the scene where Jef drives the stolen car right into the scrap garage. Without missing a beat, Alain Delon drove the car down the narrow alley and into the garage in one shot.
• Playing Against Type: François Périer, who played the police inspector, was a comedian cast against type.
• Reality Subtext: It was revealed in later years that Alain and Nathalie Delon had connections to French organized crime.

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