Du mou dans la gâchette (1966)
Directed by Louis Grospierre

Film Review

Du mou dans la gâchette is one of a seemingly endless series of very silly gangster thrillers made in France in the 1960s, which sought to capitalise on the success of films such as Les Tontons flingueurs (1963) and Les Barbouzes (1964).  Like many films of its ilk, this one is seriously handicapped by a sub-mediocre screenplay that has fewer laughs than a Trappist monk convention and is directed with no real flair or imagination.  Despite the presence of so many talented comic performers in the cast, the film fails to be even mildly amusing, and the run-around plot quickly becomes repetitive and tedious.

Film Synopsis

Jo Laguerre is a king of the Parisian underworld, a ruthless gangster boss who expects unswerving loyalty and total commitment from those he hires for his nefarious exploits.  He also expects a modicum of competence, and in this he is about to be sorely let down by his two latest recruits - Nicolas Pappas and Léon Dubois.  These two petty criminals are minnows in the world of organised crime.  In fact they are just about two of the most disorganised criminals the world has ever seen, a duo that can be relied upon to foul up any operation, no matter how straightforward.

When a hold-up goes badly wrong, Nicolas and Léon are sent by Big Jo to go after a rival hoodlum with orders to kill on sight.  At this stage, Jo has no idea of the level of crass ineptitude he has added to his payroll, and when the truth suddenly dawns that he has hired two crackpots instead of two crack-shots he is not a happy bunny.  Without a second's thought, he immediately rounds up some more dependable professional killers and sends them after the two bungling idiots before they can do any more harm.  Unfortunately, Nicolas and Léon are so inordinately useless that they can't even be relied upon to play the part of an assassin's target.  Jo Laguerre ends up wishing he had stuck to an honest trade...