Whatever you think about the politics of French actor Alain Delon – a few years ago he came out in praise of far-right French party, the National Front – there is no denying the fact that back in his pomp and prime he was one the most dashing leading men ever to grace the silver screen. Those cheekbones were like tiny guillotines, so sharp were they.
Delon’s iconic depiction of hitman Jef Costello in Jean-Pierre Melville’s Le Samouraï (1967) is perhaps the actor’s most celebrated role, a part that required Delon to project the villainous solitude of a hired gun living alone in a sparse, grey Parisian apartment. Delon’s eyes throughout are that of a snake’s, flickering nuggets of suspicion on skin as white as milk.
The opening scene sets the chilly mood: a long, continuous shot shows the actor lying on his bed, smoking, with little else moving save for the occasional flutter of a bird his character keeps in a cage for company. The tonal palette is raincloud grey and cold, blue hues. An invented quotation then underlines the film’s major themes of violence and isolation: "There is no greater solitude than that of the samurai, unless it is that of the tiger in the jungle..."
Costello’s wardrobe is well edited, yet ludicrously stylish, the most recognisable item being a slightly oversized, khaki double-breasted trench coat he wears throughout the film. Delon’s face stays virtually expressionless while he belts the coat tight, pops the large collar and pulls his razor-rimmed fedora down to the bridge of his nose. The trench is his armour, an assassin’s uniform, the slate grey material sheltering his identity from the cops or other watchful eyes. Has anyone – bar the guy you see occasionally hovering outside Greggs on Kentish Town high street – ever looked quite so sinister?
There were trench coat heroes prior to Delon, of course. Humphrey Bogart is a tough act to follow – check his Aquascutum Kingsway trench in The Maltese Falcon (1941) – yet Delon imbues the coat with extra killer cool; he's the ultimate silent antihero, one who influenced parts such as Ryan Gosling's nameless protagonist in Drive and George Clooney in Anton Corbijn’s The American. I'll take Delon's trench over Gosling's gold bomber any day.
Although there has been some discussion as to the make of Delon’s coat in the film, eagle-eyed fashion heads concur that the item is most likely from Aquascutum rather than Burberry, the buttons being more centralised and closer together in the former. Whatever the brand, the panache with which it is worn is to be studied and, when possible, mimicked. Hint: wear the collar high and without any semblance of humour for extra threat. Winters are for evenings alone and contemplating one's next move.
