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Search 713 spoiler-free recommendations from 1916 to 2026. Filter by the night you want—not the list you’re supposed to finish.

Direct film viewShowing master rank #649 on its own—not above the ranking.
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DirectorAll directors

Most represented · 6+ films

More recurring directors · 3–5 films54
All directors · surname A–Z438
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Big Three membership
Major award winners

1 selected film

Master Rank balances Greatness, Engagement, and Ease. Sort by Greatness for the artistic-canon view.

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View L'Argent film page
Original poster artwork · Great Cinema Master List

Spoiler-free premise

A forged 500-franc note is cynically passed from person to person and shop to shop.

Read expanded premiseLonger, still spoiler-free

A schoolboy passes a forged 500-franc note to a photography shop, whose owners knowingly give it to heating-oil worker Yvon Targe. Arrest, job loss, and cascading punishment pull Yvon into consequences far beyond the original deception.

Why it belongs

L'Argent charts one counterfeit note through hands, tills, doors, and institutions, making money's circulation a cold chain of conscience-bound consequence.

Read expanded why it belongsThe fuller editorial case

Close views of notes, receipts, cash drawers, delivery vans, courtroom procedure, prison doors, and unexplained gestures make causality material—Christian Patey's Yvon is progressively reduced by systems responding without mercy.

Major award record

Metadata only · zero points in 40/40/20
Cannes1 win1983 · official festival record ↗
Best Director1983 · Robert Bressonofficial festival record ↗

Totals include every recorded competitive win. Only Picture or top-film honors, Direction, Screenplay, and lead or supporting performances are named.

Good for
Film Club
Descriptive guidance derived from rating, genre, runtime, mood, and GCML scores.

Institutional reference ranks

Sight & Sound169IMDb Top 250—AFI 100—
Reference metadata only · not part of the 40/40/20 score

Great Cinema Master List scores

Greatness9.2
Engagement7.1
Ease5.0

French · Not Rated
Narrative Feature
Mood: Tense & Absorbing