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In turn-of-the-century Paris, Georges Randal, a wellborn orphan, is cheated out of his inheritance by an unscrupulous uncle and then forced to stand by helplessly while his cousin Charlotte, with whom he is in love, is forced by her uncle to become engaged to another man. He reduces Charlotte’s fiancé to the status of a pauper by stealing the fiancé’s family jewels, thereby causing his uncle to break the engagement. Inspired by his first taste of crime, Georges goes to Brussels and meets the Abbot Lamargelle, an underworld priest who becomes his mentor. Before long, Georges has risen to the top of his profession. By utilizing his appeal to women to gain entrance into the homes of the privileged, he quickly amasses a considerable fortune. When the rise of anarchy in France stirs police retaliation, he flees to England. There he is reunited with Charlotte, who has been disinherited by her debauched uncle. Upon learning that the old man is dying, Georges exacts the perfect revenge by destroying the uncle’s will and forging a new one in Charlotte’s favor. With Charlotte’s fortune added to his own, Georges no longer has any need to go on stealing. But it is too late to stop; thievery has become a way of life for him.

With. Jean-Paul Belmondo, Geneviève Bujold, Marie Dubois.