French director Bernard-Roland’s stylish La Nuit des Traqués (US: The Night of the Hunted) combines Beat Generation attitudes with noir aesthetics. Sami Frey plays Victor, member of a gang of young thieves who accidentally murders the despotic Fagan figure Taretta (Philippe Clay), then recruits his sister (Juliette Mayniel) and her boyfriend to help get rid of the body, first considering an industrial furnace but ultimately deciding on the harbor. The night watchman Lino (Fulco Lulli) witnesses their disposal of the corpse and seeks to profit from it; he’s not only a blackmailer but also a sort of prostitute, living rent-free with an overweight, older female criminal in exchange for sex. Featuring a pet monkey named Prince and a guitar singalong, The Night of the Hunted is fascinating as a specimen of late film noir transitioning into French New Wave: youthful rebellion, narrative experimentation, etc. Cinematographer Pierre Petit creates many memorable moments, both expressionistic and not, particularly the use of naturally flashing light to bring a slow-motion strobe effect to high-tension scenes.