The gangster film is often perceived as an American invention, but this did not prevent other cinema industries from embracing the genre and producing classics of their own. One such industry is French, whose 1954 film *Touchez pas au grisbi*, directed by Jacques Becker, is one of the most celebrated pieces of 1950s cinema. The title, which literally means “Don’t touch the loot,” was taken from the eponymous novel b…







