Jean-Paul Belmondo: his cult lines that marked French cinema – Franceinfo

In his films, Jean-Paul Belmondo was used to punch lines. “If the bullshit is not reimbursed by social insurance, you will end up on the straw”, he launched in A monkey in winter, by Henri Verneuil (1962). His banter was rebellious, and very French. “You have to put the adjective at the end, not at the beginning, we don’t say ‘Jewish you look’, but ‘you look Jewish’, and if I say ‘stupid you look ‘, It’s not french”, he retorted in Ace of aces, by Gérard Oury (1962).

With the words of Michel Audiard, he knew how to become a philosopher. “Do you know what the difference is between a con and a thief? A thief, from time to time, it takes a rest”, he suggested in The Guignolo by Georges Lautner (1960). The actor himself never rested, wielding casual irony better than anyone. But “Bébel” was also a seducer. A mixture of charm and panache which opened all the doors to him.