Posts Tagged ‘Jean-Pierre Cassel’

Vincent Cassel on His Portrait of a Gangster

Thursday, August 26th, 2010

In gangster circles, here and abroad, there are three sure ways for a criminal to know he’s made the Big Time: 1) his mug shot is on display in post offices across the nation; 2) the cops and media have honored his nefarious achievements by giving him a cool nickname; and 3) he’s been awarded the title, Public Enemy No. 1, or has made the FBI’s 10-most-wanted list.

By the time an assault team of heavily armed Parisian police caught up with him on November 2, 1979, Jacques Mesrine had hit the aforementioned trifecta not only in France, but his notoriety had prompted manhunts in Canada and the United States, as well. His skill at disguising himself to avoid identification and arrest won him the sobriquet Man of a Thousand Faces. An unrepentant bad-ass and world-class blowhard, Mesrine routinely played the press and public like a violin, at least until a chronic inability to contain his violent urges and monstrous ego combined to spoil the love fest.
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