Principal cast
Martin LaSalle as Michel, Marika Green as Jeanne, Jean Pélégri as Lead Inspector, Dolly Scal as The Mother, and Pierre Leymarie as Jacques
Film 204 of 271 on the Screen Path
Pickpocket
To reach you at last, what a strange path I had to take.
About the film
Pickpocket at a glance.
Screen Path places this 1959 film at stop 204 in one curated journey through cinema. The learning experience adds context before you watch and deeper analysis after.
Michel takes up pickpocketing on a lark and is arrested soon after. His mother dies shortly after his release, and despite the objections of his only friend, Jacques, and his mother's neighbor Jeanne, Michel teams up with a couple of petty thieves in order to improve his craft. With a police inspector keeping an eye on him, Michel also tries to get a straight job, but the temptation to steal is hard to resist.
Key craft credits
Léonce-Henri Burel (director of photography), Raymond Lamy (editor), Robert Bresson (screenplay), and Pierre Charbonnier (production design)
- Director
- Robert Bresson
- Release
- 1959-12-16
- Runtime
- 75 minutes
- Genres
- Crime and Drama
- Country
- France
- Quiz
- 50 questions
The Screen Path journey
Before. After. Remember.
The featured film is watched outside Screen Path. The app provides the learning experience around it: a guide, an analysis, and a quiz with explanations.
01
Before you watch
Start with a spoiler-free video guide to the context and filmmaking choices worth noticing.
Spoiler-free02
After the film
Return after watching for a deeper video analysis of craft, meaning, and legacy.
Contains spoilers03
Quiz yourself
Answer 50 questions with clear rationales designed to make the ideas stick.
50 questions in this journeyWant to try a complete journey on the web? The Citizen Kane page includes the spoiler-free guide, after-film analysis, and a sample quiz.
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