Jacques Becker's thriller stars Jean Gabin as Max, an aging, gentlemanly mobster who thinks he's about to retire after a massively successful heist. But he soon discovers that someone else has his eye on the loot: a brutal crime boss named Angelo (Lino Ventura). Angelo heard about the jackpot from his girlfriend (Jeanne Moreau), and he gives Max a choice to give up the cash or sacrifice himself, and what ensues is a tense game of cat and mouse.