Trois Jours A Vivre (aka 3 Days To Live) (1957)

A struggling actor (Daniel Gelin) witnesses a murder and fingers a suspect (Lino Ventura) as the killer. But when the man escapes from prison, he phones the actor telling him he has only three days to live before he's killed. Based on the novel by Peter Vanett and directed by Gilles Grangier (LE DESORDRE ET LA NUIT). An odd thriller in that the film's protagonist is unlikable. He's selfish, cowardly and abusive to other people. In comparison, the escaped convict is kinder and has a sense of integrity (slight though it is). One wonders why Jeanne Moreau, who plays the actor's girlfriend, puts up with him and his juvenile tantrums. For awhile, it looked like Moreau would hook up with Ventura's thug and I was hoping but alas, she stuck with Gelin. With Georges Flamant and Evelyne Rey.