Word: gabin
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...this melange of cliches, however, there is one stereotype that is always' delightful: Jean Gabin. After the initial shock of seeing him without grey hair and enormous bags under his eyes (in this condition he bears an uncomfortable resemblance to Spencer Tracy) one quickly realizes that the head hood is unchanging. Gabin emerges from his cores with his usual aplomb and his gloriously rumpled deadpan intact. He is the only criminal around who can slap everybody in sight, including two lovely ladies, without ever appearing to be anything more than a pompous but lovable businessman a little out of sorts...
...Grisbi is too much even for Gabin. And the rest of the cast plods through this meandering script with about as much determination as a group of students heading for a nine o'clock class. Even the machine-gun fire moves slowly...
...Maigret, that old stalwart Jean Gabin gives a magnificent performance. The Inspector is not the usual suave type, he doesn't have beautiful girls falling all over him. Not only is Maigret happily married, but he is aging, paunchy, and tired. With all these drawbacks, he still managers to make Peter Gunn look like an inept amateur...
...Gabin interprets Maigret as a shrewd man who can trap one murderer by being gentle and fatherly and capturing the other by being violent and disgusted. He understands what motivates a criminal and plays on their psyches like a virtuoso. Sloppy, unimpressive, Maigret is nonetheless the cleverest of sleuths, and Gabin plays him to perfection...
Actually, Inspector Maigret is a gem of understatement. Always frank, in the best French tradition, the movie is nonetheless in perfect taste. As a result, it is absorbing and believable. Besides, there is no better combination than Jean Gabin and good Gallic murder-mystery...