Is Belmondo, the French Version of Roger Moore (French and English)?

Seeds: So I know you like the muscled, winking version of Belmondo who is the French version of Roger Moore more than the hero of the Nouvelle Vague. Which is your favourite of those. I remember having loved Le Professionel, and just rewatched it and (put aside the awful sexual and racial politics, those are a given), it’s way slower than I remembered. The last 45 mins are brilliant, but it takes a long, long time to get there. Any recommendations?

Ah yes, muscled, cocky Belmondo, chain-smoking and smirking his way through danger like he just bet your car in a poker game and won. That era of his career—when he turned into a sort of Gallic action hero with a stuntman’s swagger—is endlessly entertaining, even if (as you say) you often have to wince your way through the politics.

You're right about Le Professionnel: the Morricone score (that theme!) and the finale are pure myth-making, but the pacing is uneven. It's a slow burn, and not always in a good way.

If you're after more of the same high-octane, alpha Belmondo but want something a bit tighter, here are a few recommendations:

🔥 Le Marginal (1983)

Probably the closest cousin to Le Professionnel. Belmondo plays a maverick cop (of course) up against drug traffickers in Marseille. It’s got that same gritty feel, urban setting, and an insane car chase through Paris. Very much in the “one man vs the system” mode.

🥷 Le Solitaire (1987)

One of his last films in that style. He's older, but still doing stunts, still dressing in impeccable jackets while punching through bureaucracy. It’s got that melancholic end-of-an-era feel, almost a swan song for this version of Belmondo.

🎭 Le Corps de mon ennemi (1976)

A bit of a pivot—it’s more layered than the pure action stuff. Starts like a gangster thriller but slowly turns into a story of class revenge. You still get the slick suits, the sneer, the one-liners—but also a smarter plot and social commentary. Kind of a bridge between cool Belmondo and clever Belmondo.

💥 Peur sur la ville (1975)

This one's a wild ride. He plays a cop chasing a serial killer across Paris rooftops (yes, Belmondo actually did those stunts). It’s tense, stylish, and that opening chase scene? Unreal.

Also, I have a soft spot for Flic ou Voyou (1979). It's a bit more tongue-in-cheek, lighter in tone, but still full of swagger. Belmondo seems to be having a blast, and it shows.

If you’re ever in the mood for a double-feature night, I’d say:

Start with: Peur sur la ville for thrills and stunts,
Then wind down with: Le Corps de mon ennemi for a slow-burn, class-warfare noir with a twisty plot.

Got a favorite Belmondo one-liner or scene that stuck with you?

Do you think he has something to do with Roger Moore?

That’s a great question—and yeah, I do think there’s a spiritual kinship between Belmondo (in his post–Nouvelle Vague, action-star phase) and Roger Moore’s Bond era. Not in the content necessarily, but in the tone and persona they both cultivated.

Let’s break it down:

😏 The Eyebrow Archetype

Roger Moore had the eyebrow. Belmondo had the smirk. Both were physical ticks that said:

"Yes, I’m in danger. No, I’m not sweating it. Also, have you seen my suit?"

They embodied a kind of cool under fire that felt less tortured than their predecessors—Connery for Moore, and the Godardian anti-heroes for Belmondo.

🎬 Violence with a Wink

Moore’s Bond and Belmondo’s late-career action roles (Le Marginal, Peur sur la ville) share that "I could kill you, or make a joke about it—or maybe both" vibe. The violence is stylized, almost playful. Belmondo often fought goons like he was dancing with them, just as Moore always looked like he was making cocktails with his punches.

🚁 Stunts as Style

Where Moore had gadgets and quips, Belmondo had stunts. Real, dangerous, rooftop-hopping stunts. That was his version of suavity—making it look like nothing. It’s a different flavor, but the intent is the same: effortless masculinity.

🧥 The Suited Rebel

Both were very much of the late '70s/early '80s aesthetic—tailored jackets, silk scarves, cars that exploded for no reason. They were rebels, but respectably dressed. There's a sense that you could bring either one home to your mother, and she’d both disapprove and swoon.

So: Belmondo ≈ Roger Moore?

Not identical, but adjacent. They inhabited the same cultural moment: post–'60s idealism, pre–'90s grit. They were part of that brief window where the action hero could be cheeky, charming, and oddly bulletproof—not just physically, but emotionally.

Moore may have had MI6.
Belmondo had the Ministère de la Classe.

You ever imagine what it would’ve been like if they had done a buddy-cop film together? Total chaos. Probably set in Monaco. Probably ends with a double wink.

Is Belmondo more of roger moore or tony curtis?

Oof, that's a juicy one. Let’s triangulate that—Belmondo, Moore, Curtis—three very different but overlapping flavors of charm in motion. So: is Belmondo more of a Roger Moore or a Tony Curtis?

👔 Roger Moore: The Aristocratic Rogue

Always in control, rarely ruffled.
A very British brand of charm: smooth, ironic, knowing.
Action is a vehicle for quips; you never feel real danger.
Smiles with a monocle in his soul.

🍸 Tony Curtis: The Streetwise Chameleon

Bronx-born flash and fast talk.
Can do comedy (Some Like It Hot), drama, caper flicks—he morphs.
A bit messier, more unpredictable.
Charisma with a shrug.

🥊 Belmondo is kind of a hybrid, but:

If we’re talking early Belmondo (Nouvelle Vague Belmondo):

He’s got Curtis’s unpredictability and raw energy.
Think À bout de souffle: impulsive, young, a bit dangerous, not playing for laughs.

If we’re talking '70s–'80s Belmondo (the muscled action star phase):

He leans more into Moore’s territory.
He’s smirking through shootouts, unfazed, witty. He jumps off a building and adjusts his tie. It’s self-aware cool, just with fewer gadgets and more cigarettes.

So: Belmondo is Moore with Curtis under the hood.

His surface in the '80s resembles Moore: self-assured, winking, unflappable.
But his roots are closer to Curtis: scrappy, visceral, ready to get messy.

If Roger Moore is a silk tie and Tony Curtis is an open collar, Belmondo is the guy who wears the tie but might strangle someone with it if you push him too far.

What do you think? More Monte Carlo or more Bronx pool hall?

Belmondo is not the French Version of Roger Moore. They may share the same spiritual kinship and the same tone and persona. That is because they are of the same era in between the 60s and before the 90s at a time where a hero could be cheeky , charming and oddly bulletproof not just physically and emotional in their effortless masculinity. And of course, there would the wink and the ladies. There are many others of that era like Tony Curtis, Tom Selleck, The big difference is that

Oh yes—you're right on the money, and you’re tapping into the deeper nuance here. Belmondo isn’t the French version of Roger Moore. That would flatten both of them, when really they’re orbiting the same cultural star but from different angles.

Let me riff on your thought a bit, because you’re sketching something essential about that liminal era of male stardom—between the brooding '50s anti-heroes and the jaded, muscled-up '90s action men.

🕴️**Belmondo isn't like Moore—he's of the same moment.**

They both inhabit that space where:

charm replaces angst,
elegance is a kind of armor,
and masculinity is less tortured, more... wry. They’re from that post-post-war generation that enjoys being the hero, but never takes it too seriously.

Belmondo smokes, jumps off roofs, flirts shamelessly, and throws a punch like he’s dancing.
Moore adjusts his cufflinks mid-explosion, quips about caviar, and never seems to sweat.
It’s not the same man—but it’s the same cultural permission: be invincible, be amused, be hot.

📺 And yeah, there’s a whole constellation of them:

Tony Curtis had that New York sass and scruff, a mix of vulnerability and hustle.
Tom Selleck brought it into the '80s with Hawaiian shirts and mustaches.
Clint Eastwood flirts with that tone early on, before going full gravel.
Even Michael Caine, in The Italian Job or Get Carter, was doing the cheeky-tough guy in a well-cut suit.

They’re all in that space between James Dean and Bruce Willis—between tortured youth and wisecracking carnage.

💡 The big difference with Belmondo?

He did his own stunts.
And not just because it looked cool—it was part of his physicality. He wasn’t just playing the part; he embodied it. His action wasn’t stylized; it was visceral, balletic, dangerous. That puts him in a more immediate category than Moore, who was always slightly above the action, like a conductor.

Belmondo was in it, bruised and grinning.

So maybe the best way to put it is:

Belmondo is not the French Roger Moore—he's the French Belmondo, cut from the same era, cast in a similar mold, but forged in a different fire.

Wanna co-write a mini-manifesto on these guys of the cheeky hero era? It could be called "Wink and the World Winks with You."

yes, write a mini-manifesto

✨ WINK AND THE WORLD WINKS WITH YOU ✨
A mini-manifesto for the Cheeky Hero Era

This is for the men who could disarm a bomb, a dictator, or a dinner guest—with the same raised eyebrow.

From the late 1960s to the edge of the 1990s, there emerged a particular breed of cinematic hero. He wasn’t brooding in the rain or covered in blood and bandanas. No, this man wore a suit. Or a leather jacket. Or a perfectly unbuttoned shirt. And he wore them like armor.

He was charming, cheeky, and oddly bulletproof—not just physically, but emotionally. Pain existed, but it never undid him. He never cried in the shower. He smoked in the shower, if anything.

🎬 His Stunt Double Was Himself

Whether it was Belmondo leaping across rooftops in Peur sur la ville, or Tom Selleck doing donuts in a Ferrari in Magnum, P.I., this man moved through the world with confidence as choreography.

He didn’t need capes. Or CGI.
He needed a cigarette, a convertible, and just enough time to kiss the girl before the car explodes.

🕶 He Had Style—but Never Sweated It

Roger Moore’s Bond adjusted his cufflinks after killing a man.
Tony Curtis could knock you out, then get your mother to make him lunch.
Belmondo did somersaults between bullets and still had time to flirt with the waitress.

They were iconic because they weren’t trying to be.
They moved like they knew the camera was watching—and made it feel lucky to be there.

💥 He Was a Hero… With a Wink

Not cynical, not cold, but knowing. These men understood the absurdity of being The Hero and leaned into it. They fought crime and injustice, sure—but also boredom, bad wine, and bureaucrats.

Their weapons were fists and guns—but also eyebrows, smirks, and devastating one-liners.

⚡️ The Big Difference?

Belmondo didn’t just wink at the world.
He jumped off a speeding train while winking at the world.

Where others danced around danger, Belmondo danced with it.
No green screen. No doubles. Just a lit cigarette, a crooked smile, and the belief that gravity was optional.

So here’s to the cheeky heroes.
The men who made danger look dashing.
Who treated style as a sidearm.
And who knew that sometimes, the best way to fight the world… was to wink at it.

Vive Belmondo. Long live the eyebrow.

Want to put this on a poster? Or make it a voice-over for a grainy montage of rooftop chases and convertible getaways?

what is the best belmondo movies in that type?

Ah, now we’re talking! If we’re dialing in on Belmondo in full wink-and-punch mode—not the moody Nouvelle Vague stuff, but peak cheeky action hero Belmondo—then here’s a tight list of his best in that specific genre-vibe. Think: stunts, smirks, swagger, and suits.

🎯 Top-Tier "Belmondo the Bulletproof" Films

1. Peur sur la ville (1975)

🗼 The rooftop one.
He plays a cop chasing a serial killer across Paris. The stunts are real, the pacing is tight, and Belmondo literally jumps between buildings. Stylish, suspenseful, and utterly iconic.

2. Le Professionnel (1981)

🕵️ The Morricone one.
Espionage, betrayal, revenge… and that unforgettable score. The pace may feel slow at first, but the final act sings. Belmondo’s charisma is off the charts here.

3. Flic ou Voyou (1979)

💼 The fun one.
Is he a cop? A crook? Both? Belmondo has a blast playing both sides, changing outfits like a spy with a stylist. It’s light on its feet and big on charm.

4. Le Marginal (1983)

💊 The Marseille one.
He’s a tough, lone-wolf cop fighting drug lords. Feels like a French cousin to Dirty Harry, but cooler, smoother, and a lot more fun to watch with a glass of red.

5. L’Incorrigible (1975)

🎩 The con man one.
This is Belmondo in Tony Curtis mode—he plays a lovable rogue always one step ahead of the system. Not heavy on action, but dripping with cheek and charm.

💎 Bonus Picks (Less Known, Still Gold)

6. Le Corps de mon ennemi (1976)

🎭 The classy revenge one.
Starts slow, builds like a noir, and ends with a social gut-punch. Less action, more plot, but Belmondo’s performance has bite and brains.

7. Le Guignolo (1980)

🎪 The comic caper one.
If you like your Belmondo in “international playboy on a silly mission” mode, this is pure Bond spoof meets French farce. Silly, stylized fun.

8. L’Alpagueur (1976)

🔫 The bounty hunter one.
A loner hero tracking down criminals—this one is grittier, a bit less flashy, but really solid. The balance between action and character is spot on.

🚁 If You Want One with Everything:

Go with Peur sur la ville.
It’s got the Paris skyline, the chase scenes, the charisma, and the real-deal Belmondo doing what nobody else dared.

Got time for a mini-retrospective weekend? I can build you a perfect Belmondo action-star film festival lineup—complete with cocktail pairings and snack suggestions. 😎

What about le magnifique?

Ahhh yes — Le Magnifique (1973)!
Now that’s a wild card, and a brilliant one. It's not just one of the best Belmondo films of the cheeky action era — it’s also one of the cleverest, because it’s a satire of Belmondo himself, of spy movies, and of the whole masculine fantasy genre.

Let’s break it down:

🎬 What is it?

Belmondo plays François Merlin, a low-paid pulp novelist who escapes into his imagination, where he becomes Bob Saint-Clar, the ultimate spy hero. In his head, he’s everything he’s not in real life: suave, athletic, adored by women, and unstoppable.

So you get:

Real life: drab, frustrating, humble.
Fantasy life: explosions, tuxedos, sex on the beach (literally), and over-the-top villains.

It’s Belmondo vs. Belmondo.

🕶 Why it’s brilliant

It perfectly spoofs the very archetype that Belmondo became in his other films.
It’s funny without being silly. Witty, meta, self-aware.
It allows Belmondo to play two versions of himself: the daydreaming underdog and the cocky superspy.
Jacqueline Bisset is divine.
The action is absurd on purpose, and yet somehow still thrilling.
It’s basically a French cousin to Austin Powers before Austin Powers existed — but smarter, sexier, and actually... emotional.

✨ So where does it fit in the "Cheeky Hero Era" canon?

Le Magnifique is like the mirror held up to all the others.
It belongs to the same gang as Flic ou Voyou, Le Professionnel, Le Marginal... but it winks at the wink.
It doesn’t just play the game—it breaks the fourth wall and makes fun of it.

If you’re doing a Belmondo retrospective, I’d say:

Watch Le Magnifique after a couple of his serious action flicks.
That way, you fully appreciate how gloriously it dismantles the myth he helped build.

🏆 TL;DR:

Le Magnifique is Belmondo’s self-aware masterpiece.
As stylish as Bond, as funny as Curtis, and as cool as only Belmondo can be—while quietly whispering:

“This is all a fantasy, darling. But let’s enjoy the ride.”

Ever tried watching it back-to-back with OSS 117? It makes for a wicked then-vs-now French spy parody double feature.

Belmondo would have been perfect for OSS 117

YES. 100%. Belmondo was born to play OSS 117 — and in many ways, he actually did, just under different names.

🕶️ **Let’s be real: Belmondo was OSS 117 in spirit.**

Think about it:

Suave, international man of mystery? ✔️
Fights goons in exotic locations? ✔️
Kisses the femme fatale and the ambassador’s daughter? ✔️
Dresses like a Milan fashion editorial and moves like a stuntman? ✔️
Completely unfazed by explosions, bullets, or the complexities of female conversation? ✔️✔️✔️

🗺️ OSS 117 is a spoof. Belmondo was the original source material.

The Jean Dujardin OSS 117 films (Le Caire, nid d'espions and Rio ne répond plus) are loving parodies of the genre — and they work because actors like Belmondo created that prototype:

The indestructible spy who’s too handsome for his own good, too confident to question himself, and too charming to be mad at, even when he says something wildly inappropriate.

In fact, Dujardin’s OSS 117 is basically Bob Saint-Clar from Le Magnifique, dialed up to 11.

🎬 Imagine the Belmondo OSS 117 movie we never got...

Title: "OSS 117 contre la République du Chaos"
Directed by Georges Lautner.
Music by Michel Legrand or Francis Lai.
Opening shot: Belmondo water-skiing behind a cigarette boat while lighting a Gauloise.
He parachutes into Monaco, takes out three spies with a baguette, seduces the villain’s wife and secretary, and ends by winking at the camera while the Eiffel Tower explodes behind him (for reasons unknown).

Tell me you wouldn’t watch that twice.

🏁 TL;DR:

Belmondo was the OSS 117 we never got — not the parody, but the prototype.
He was cooler than Bond, funnier than Flint, and had more swagger than his own shadow. If OSS 117 had been played straight in the ’70s, there’s no doubt:

It would’ve been Belmondo in the role — and we’d still be quoting his one-liners today.

Wanna imagine a dream OSS 117 script for Belmondo? I’ve got ideas. The tagline could be:
"OSS 117: Licensed to Wink."

Itineraire d'un enfant gate n'est pas un film du genre?

Ah, excellent question — non, Itinéraire d’un enfant gâté (1988) n’est pas tout à fait un film du genre, mais... il joue avec les mêmes codes, sauf qu’il les retourne vers quelque chose de plus mélancolique, plus introspectif. C’est Belmondo en mode crépusculaire, plus vulnérable, plus fatigué du cirque.

🎭 C’est quoi, le film ?

Belmondo y joue Sam Lion, un ancien cascadeur devenu patron d’une grande entreprise, qui décide de tout plaquer et de disparaître pour de bon. Il rencontre un gars paumé (interprété par Richard Anconina) et se noue alors une amitié étrange, faite de transmission, de jeux d’identité, et de retrouvailles impossibles.

💔 **Pourquoi c’est à part ?**

Parce que contrairement à ses films d’action des années 70–80, ici :

Il ne court plus. Il marche.
Il ne drague plus. Il se souvient.
Il ne cherche pas à séduire le monde. Il cherche à lui échapper.
Il ne survole plus la vie avec un sourire — il en porte le poids.

🌅 Mais il reste du Belmondo "héros" dedans

Son aura est intacte.
Il a encore ce charisme tranquille, cette manière d’occuper l’écran sans rien faire.
Il y a des restes du mythe — mais on le voit le quitter, doucement.

🧭 Alors où le classer ?

C’est pas un film du "wink and punch genre" à la Le Professionnel ou Flic ou Voyou,
mais c’est peut-être l’épilogue de ce genre.
Le moment où Belmondo regarde son propre héritage… et s’autorise, pour une fois, à ne pas gagner.

En ce sens, Itinéraire d’un enfant gâté, c’est un peu le Unforgiven de Belmondo.

🏁 TL;DR :

Non, ce n’est pas un film du genre. Mais c’est ce qu’il reste du héros quand le clin d’œil se referme.
Un film de passage. De silence après le vacarme.
Et peut-être l’un des plus beaux de sa carrière.

Tu l’as revu récemmentt

Belmondo is not the French Version of Roger Moore. They may share the same spiritual kinship and the same tone and persona but there are many others like Tony Curtis or Tom Selleck even Clint Eastwood. I see two differences between the two: Moore was a spy and Belmondo was a cop and Belmondo didn’t just wink at the world, he jumped off a speeding train while winking at the world. If you are looking at movies from this Belmondo Era, you have already watched the Professional so I recommend Peur sur la Ville ou Flic ou Voyou and then once you have watched those movies and only after, I would recommend Le Magnifique who is a parody and Itineraire d’un enfant gate (1998) who is more about the crepuscule of this type of heros.

That’s a perfect take — sharp, cinematic, and with just the right dose of admiration. Honestly, it reads like the intro to a film retrospective or a column in Cahiers du Cinéma. If you’re game, here’s a slightly polished version that keeps your voice but tightens the rhythm just a touch — like a good Belmondo punch:

Final Take:

Belmondo is not the French version of Roger Moore.
They may share a certain spiritual kinship — the same tone, the same persona — but they are not the same man in a different language. That entire era gave us men cut from similar cloth: Tony Curtis, Tom Selleck, even Clint Eastwood in his more playful moments. They were charming, cheeky, and oddly bulletproof — not just physically, but emotionally. Masculinity worn with a wink.

But there are two key differences between Belmondo and Moore:
Moore was a spy. Belmondo was a cop.
Moore adjusted his cufflinks after a kill. Belmondo lit a cigarette while the car exploded behind him.
Moore winked at the world. Belmondo jumped off a speeding train while winking at the world.

If you’re exploring films from this Belmondo era, and you’ve already watched Le Professionnel, I’d recommend diving into:

Peur sur la Ville – for the rooftop stunts and noir energy
Flic ou Voyou – for Belmondo in full swagger and disguise mode

And only after those, step into:

Le Magnifique – a sharp, hilarious self-parody of the action hero myth Belmondo himself helped create
Itinéraire d’un enfant gâté (1988) – a more melancholic epilogue, where the hero doesn’t just age… he reflects

This isn’t just about a filmography.
It’s about watching a persona evolve — from untouchable to unforgettable.