The Big Risk (Classe tous risques) (1960)

100% of critics liked it
(18 reviews)
79% of users liked it
(684 ratings)

A criminal on the run finds going home after a decade is harder than he expects in this drama from French filmmaker Claude Sautet. Gangster Abel Davos (Lino Ventura) is wanted for murder in France, and has been living underground in Italy for ten years. Since then, Abel has married Therese (Simone… More A criminal on the run finds going home after a decade is harder than he expects in this drama from French filmmaker Claude Sautet. Gangster Abel Davos (Lino Ventura) is wanted for murder in France, and has been living underground in Italy for ten years. Since then, Abel has married Therese (Simone France) and fathered two sons, and he's decided it's time to come home. Abel has planed an elaborate scheme in which he'll steal a fortune to finance his journey and head home with Therese and the boys, but little goes as planned, and he arrives in Paris without his wife and running from the law with two kids in tow. An underworld boss who owes Abel some favors helps him put together a plan to travel across France in an ambulance to avoid suspicion, and recruits a headstrong young gangster, Eric (Jean-Paul Belmondo), to serve as Abel's driver and right-hand-man. En route, Abel tries to settle some old score with criminal associates who betrayed him. Based on a novel by Jose Giovanni, Classe Tous Risques was the first feature film from Sautet, who previously had worked as an assistant director for some of France's most prestigious filmmakers. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 1 hr. 30 min.
Directed By: Claude Sautet
Genres: Art House & International, Drama

In Theaters: Mar 23, 1960 Wide
On DVD: Jun 17, 2008
Studio: Rialto Pictures

Critic Reviews

Eleanor Ringel Gillespie, Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Doesn't quite rate lost-classic status, but it's done with a great deal of dexterity, intelligence and an appealing end-of-'50s cool.
John Monaghan, Detroit Free Press
The rerelease of Classe Tous Risques makes you wonder how many other movies this good got scuttled by the French new wave.
Wesley Morris, Boston Globe
Even though the film isn't considered a rule-breaking classic, its straight face holds up quite nicely, thank you.
Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times
To come across Classe Tous Risques is like discovering a bottle of marvelous French wine you didn't remember you had, opening it and finding it every bit as delicious as its reputation promised.
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
A crisp, smart, cynical film about dishonor among thieves.
Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly
A doozy of a French gangster pic that, in its beautifully refurbished and pithily resubtitled re-release, turns out to be one of the highlights of the 2005 movie year.
Fernando F. Croce, CinePassion
Sautet's shrugging ambiguity, already piquant, already piercing
Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews
It ranks among the best of the French New Wave noir films.
Sean Axmaker, MSN.com
Claude Sautet made his directorial debut with this tough, lean, smart piece of French crime cinema made on the cusp of the new wave.
Sean Axmaker, Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Romantic codes of honor collide with the unforgiving doom of the gangster thriller with a fascinating ambiguity... in Claude Sautet's lean, tough 1960 crime classic...
David Elliott, San Diego Union-Tribune
French directors like Melville and Chabrol did more with the basically American forms and inspirations, but Sautet (a fairly major talent) had crack nerves and an alert, humane eye.
Andy Klein, Los Angeles CityBeat
...another eminently watchable example of the French noir trend of the period.
Maitland McDonagh, TV Guide's Movie Guide
A killer.

Read all 13 critic reviews

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Featured Audience Ratings

Stella D

another terrific french gangster film lost in the wake of the new wave, starring tough guy lino ventura as a career criminal who tries to return to france with his wife and children after 10 years away in italy. when things don't go according to plan, his old friends don't… More
another terrific french gangster film lost in the wake of the new wave, starring tough guy lino ventura as a career criminal who tries to return to france with his wife and children after 10 years away in italy. when things don't go according to plan, his old friends don't want to upset their quiet respectable lives to help out their former pal and so they send a young thief, jean paul belmondo, to his rescue. belmondo was on the brink of stardom here as this was made immediately after 'breathless,' and the film was highly influential on the work of jean-pierre melville
danny d

the film begins well, then heads towards one of the most heart wrenching and beautiful second acts ive ever seen on film, and the third act even continues in this leading me to want to give the film at least 4 1/2 stars until an incredibly anti-climatic and disappointing closeout of… More
the film begins well, then heads towards one of the most heart wrenching and beautiful second acts ive ever seen on film, and the third act even continues in this leading me to want to give the film at least 4 1/2 stars until an incredibly anti-climatic and disappointing closeout of an otherwise brilliant film. although the film drops an entire star for the horrible ending, i still loved this movie. as a father it was hard to watch but reminded me of how much i love my kids. a gritty crime story with solid performances from belmondo and ventura, highly recommended for anyone into the crime genre.
Walter M

[font=Century Gothic]"Classe Tous Risques" starts out with a father dropping his wife and kids off at the Milan train station while on the way to work. The father is Abel Davos(Lino Ventura) who was sentenced to death in absentia in France. He and his partner pull off a… More
[font=Century Gothic]"Classe Tous Risques" starts out with a father dropping his wife and kids off at the Milan train station while on the way to work. The father is Abel Davos(Lino Ventura) who was sentenced to death in absentia in France. He and his partner pull off a daring daytime heist. Realizing the police are closing in on him in Italy, Davos makes it back to France and is cornered in Nice. He calls one of his old gang in Paris for help and requests an ambulance. One of his old gang wants to go but is out on bail. The other two are now semi-legit and do not want to risk it. They do send somebody they are unfamiliar with, Eric Stark(Jean-Paul Belmondo), down to Nice with the ambulance.[/font] [font=Century Gothic][/font] [font=Century Gothic]"Classe Tous Risques" is a taut crime drama that is about honor and loyalty amongst criminals. In general, it concerns itself with acts of random kindness, sometimes from and towards the least likeliest of people. There is great location shooting and camerawork.[/font]