by Ted Davis

Also Known As: Daybreak

Directed by: Marcel Carne

Cat Out of the Bag Alert! This review contains some spoilers for this film!

Synopsis: At the beginning of this doom-laden melodrama, hard-lucked factory laborer Francois (Jean Gabin) shoots and kills practiced liar and seducer M. Valentin (Jules Berry) in a quick spasm of rage, then locks himself into his apartment and remembers the sequence of events that drove him to commit the ill-considered murder, followed by a brief contemplation of a dismal future.

Purr Blur: At about the same time that Francois arrives by bicycle to visit his insipid sweetheart Francoise (Jacqueline Laurent), who is already infatuated with the cruel Valentin, a long haired black and white cat ducks behind a nearby gate.

Kitty Cameo: As the inevitable landlady (Mady Berry) of the apartment building discusses the recent murder with her two companions, she holds and gently scritches her composed black cat under the chin, commenting that Francois always said hello to her and paused to stroke her cat.

The landlady is still carrying her cat moments after the local police attempt and fail to riddle Francois with bullets.

Final Mewsings: A man who stops to pet a cat tells you all you need to know about his character.

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