Le Dos au mur

1958, France, directed by Edouard Molinaro

I mostly know Edouard Molinaro for his 1970s and 1980s work in a comic vein, so his much darker debut feature came as a surprise (Molinaro also uses the generally light-hearted actor/director Gérard Oury in an unconventional role). It opens in arresting fashion, first with a single-shot credits sequence and subsequently with an extended (15+-minute) wordless segment that narrates the aftermath of a crime. There's a definite Poe vibe mixed in with the overall Gallic noir tone, and an astringent bitterness to the view of human relations. And there's Jeanne Moreau...