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Tirez sur le pianiste

FILM · 1960 · FRANCE

Tirez sur le pianiste

Directed by
François Truffaut
Runtime
85 min
Studio
Les Films de la Pléiade

17 archived facts 4 topics 1 source Last reviewed Nov 2026

Charlie is a former classical pianist who has changed his name and now plays jazz in a grimy Paris bar. When Charlie's brothers, Richard and Chico, surface and ask for Charlie's help while on the run from gangsters they have scammed, he aids their escape. Soon Charlie and Lena, a waitress at the same bar, face trouble when the gangsters arrive, looking for his brothers.

  • Tirez sur le pianiste — production image

17 Interesting Facts About Tirez sur le pianiste

Interesting Facts (6)

  1. #001

    The character of Charlie is partly based on François Truffaut himself. The director is said to have suffered from extreme shyness, and there is a strong visual resemblance between Charles Aznavour and Truffaut.

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  2. #002

    As Charlie, Léna and the two men abducting her drive along the road, a truck with a large "Cahiers du Cinéma" sign is in front of them. Director François Truffaut wrote for "Cahiers" and dedicated another of his films, The 400 Blows (1959), to its founder André Bazin.

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  3. #003

    François Truffaut regarded this film as a "respectful pastiche" of American cinema, referencing directors such as Orson Welles, Alfred Hitchcock, Samuel Fuller and Nicholas Ray. Moreover, the main character's name is taken from Charles Chaplin, and he is one of four brothers who closely resemble the Marx Brothers (one of whom is named Chico).

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  4. #004

    Original literary work: "Down There," David Goodis's crime novel, Gold Medal Books/Fawcett Publications, Greenwich (Connecticut), 1956, 335 pages.

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  5. #005

    Momo and his partner drive a 1954 Oldsmobile 88 four-door sedan.

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  6. #006

    This film is part of spine number 315 of the Criterion Collection.

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Production Story (7)

  1. #007

    Although it received unanimous praise from critics, it was a major disappointment at the box office. This commercial failure led Truffaut to shelve his improvisational methods and return to traditional scripted dramas.

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  2. #008

    The character of Charlie partly bears traces of François Truffaut himself. The director was said to be known for his extreme shyness; there is also a striking physical resemblance between Charles Aznavour and Truffaut.

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  3. #009

    As Charlie, Léna and the two kidnappers drive along the road, a huge "Cahiers du Cinéma" sign appears on the back of the truck ahead of them. Truffaut had written for the magazine, and he dedicated another of his films, The 400 Blows (1959), to the magazine's founder, André Bazin.

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  4. #010

    One of Bob Dylan's favorite films, it inspired his early work. In his poem "11 Outlined Epitaphs," included in the liner notes of his 1963 album The Times They Are a-Changin', Dylan makes an explicit reference to the film: "There's a movie called Shoot the Piano Player / its last line screams out / 'music, man, that's where it's at' / that's a religious statement / the bells were ringin' outside / and they / are still ringin'."

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  5. #011

    François Truffaut saw this film as a "respectful pastiche" of American cinema, saluting master directors such as Orson Welles, Alfred Hitchcock, Samuel Fuller and Nicholas Ray. Moreover, the main character takes his name from Charles Chaplin and is one of four brothers, as in the Marx Brothers (one of whom is also named Chico).

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  6. #012

    Literary source: David Goodis's crime novel "Down There." The book was published in 1956 in Greenwich, Connecticut, by Gold Medal Books/Fawcett Publications at 335 pages.

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  7. #013

    Opening text: "Music fathoms the sky." A quotation attributed to Charles Baudelaire.

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Behind the Scenes (3)

  1. #014

    Because no studio would provide funding, François Truffaut and his team shot the film on the streets of Paris on the spot, often inventing the script as they went along. Decisions about the outcome were made according to who was available during filming.

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  2. #015

    The chase scene at the opening is very dark because the rain kept bursting the bulbs of the lights that cinematographer Raoul Coutard used to illuminate the scene. Due to budget constraints and the fact that he was making a film noir, François Truffaut decided to continue shooting with minimal light, which resulted in almost total visual obscurity at certain points in the scene.

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  3. #016

    Although it was greatly admired by critics, it was a bomb at the box office. Enough so to make François Truffaut abandon his improvisational techniques and return to conventional scripted drama.

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Easter Eggs & References (1)

  1. #017

    In "11 Outlined Epitaphs," which served as the liner notes for his 1963 album The Times They Are a-Changin', Dylan explicitly references the film: "there's a movie called / Shoot the Piano Player / the last line proclaimin' / 'music, man, that's where it's at' / it is a religious line / outside, the bells are ringin' / and they / are still ringin'" (spelling and punctuation as in the original).

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Sources & editorial notes

Reference databases

  • Wikipedia English Wikipedia article
  • IMDb IMDb title page (trivia)

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