Don't tell the ending...nobody'll ever believe you!
Overview
Charles, fresh out of jail, rejects his wife's plan for a quiet life of bourgeois respectability. He enlists a former cell mate, Francis, to assist him in pulling off one final score, a carefully planned assault on the vault of a Cannes casino.
Ratings
Curator score: 7.0/10
IMDb: 7.3/10
Letterboxd: 3.78/5
TMDB: 7.2/10
Director
Henri Verneuil
Production
Compagnia Cinematografica Mondiale (CCM), Compagnie Internationale de Productions Cinématographiques (CIPRA), Cité Films
Cast
Jean Gabin, Alain Delon, Claude Cerval, Maurice Biraud, Viviane Romance, Henri Virlogeux, Jean Carmet, José Luis de Vilallonga, Rita Cadillac, Dominique Davray, Dora Doll, Germaine Montero, Carla Marlier, Georges Billy, Henri Attal, Marc Arian, Jacques Bertrand, Charles Bouillaud, Christian Brocard, Adrien Cayla-Legrand
Curator Review
Verdict
A stylish, cool-headed French heist film that leans on star chemistry, meticulous planning, and a bittersweet criminal code rather than nonstop action. It’s especially rewarding if you like elegant capers with jazzy atmosphere, mirror-play visuals, and a final stretch that lands harder than the setup suggests.
Best for
fans of classic heist movies
viewers who enjoy cool, laconic crime dramas
people drawn to French New Wave-adjacent style and 1960s glamour
audiences who like star-driven crime pairings
Skip if
you want a fast, twist-heavy modern caper
you need constant action over setup and atmosphere
you dislike older pacing or morally detached criminals
you prefer gritty realism to polished, stylish crime cinema
Overview
Henri Verneuil’s caper is all about poise: the casino plan is intricate, but the real pleasure is watching the film measure out confidence, vanity, and old habits. Jean Gabin gives the story its weathered gravity, while Alain Delon supplies the sleek, dangerous charm that keeps every scene slightly off-balance.
Worth noting
The movie takes its time getting to the vault, but that patience pays off in mood and precision. Mirrors, night exteriors, and the Riviera setting give it a glossy, almost theatrical surface, while the jazz-inflected coolness keeps the whole enterprise feeling effortless even when the tension is rising.
Bottom line
What lingers most is the ending, which gives the film a sharper emotional edge than a simple “one last job” premise might suggest. It’s a polished crime picture with a melancholy streak, and one of the better showcases for the chemistry between two very different kinds of screen cool.
Top Letterboxd reviews
pirateneckbeard (4★) · 117 likes
What a fun delightful heist film. Sure it takes awhile to get there as we establish Charles(Jean Gabin) as a character coming out of jail after 7 years for a previous (I'm guessing heist) crime to his wife who is very much an independent and is kind but cold probably due to his criminal proclivities and tries to entice him to a life of being a hotel/restaurant owner but old lady crime lingers in his loins to pull off one… more What a fun delightful heist film. Sure it takes awhile to get there as we establish Charles(Jean Gabin) as a character coming out of jail after 7 years for a previous (I'm guessing heist) crime to his wife who is very much an independent and is kind but cold probably due to his criminal proclivities and tries to entice him to a life of being a hotel/restaurant owner but old lady crime lingers in his loins to pull off one… more
jana (3.5★) · 93 likes
i absolutely adore the usage of mirrors in this. i also can’t ignore how mesmerising alain delon was.
Blair Russell (4★) · 85 likes
RIP Alain Delon. In the past I’ve discussed several films starring this French star who not only became a sex symbol, he played impossibly cool characters. This includes Le Samourai, which I’ve recently learned was incredibly influential-it wasn’t just Fincher’s The Killer that reminds people of Jef Costello. Other films I dig include Le Cercle Rouge and his small supporting role in the awesome Western Red Sun. Bronson, Delon AND Mifune… holy crap. There’s also the likes of Capucine and… more RIP Alain Delon. In the past I’ve discussed several films starring this French star who not only became a sex symbol, he played impossibly cool characters. This includes Le Samourai, which I’ve recently learned was incredibly influential-it wasn’t just Fincher’s The Killer that reminds people of Jef Costello. Other films I dig include Le Cercle Rouge and his small supporting role in the awesome Western Red Sun. Bronson, Delon AND Mifune… holy crap. There’s also the likes of Capucine and… more
MeMyNonsense (4★) · 67 likes
Firmly in the tradition of classic french capers like Rififi and Bob le flambeur comes Any Number Can Win — a complex and decidedly cool heist flick that more than delivers. Jean Gabin plays an aging con, recently released from prison who in pursuit of the mythical ‘last score’ enlists a cocky ex-cellmate (Alain Delon) in order to take down a Cannes casino.
Gabin and Delon are in top form portraying crafty crooks filled trickery and deceit instead of tired-old… more
ted (4.5★) · 61 likes
French heist movies will never be not cool. Any Number Can Win is no different. The jazzy soundtrack, the cold way characters do business, the effortless charm of Alain Delon and the tension rising as the minutes go by until it reaches a heart-breaking climax in the end. Melville probably watched this and fell in love with Delon.