Patricia
Patricia is an American woman who is an aspiring journalist living in Paris. Her parents want her to study at the Sorbonne, but she wants to be a novelist and has found a job writing for and selling The New York Herald Tribune. She met Michel one month prior, and they slept together a few times, but she does not know much about him, in spite of being drawn to him erotically. Once he reappears in her life, she tells him she is pregnant and that the child is his. She goes along with him when she finds out he is a murderer on the run, but ultimately betrays him by calling the police and giving them his location. Patricia is fickle, capricious, and seemingly depressed. She expresses an existential insecurity and longs to find meaning in her life, but she cannot commit to a love affair with a criminal, and she becomes something of an antagonist by the end.
Michel
Michel is a French con man who lives day to day by stealing what he needs from anyone who he can find. He tells Patricia he loves her, but his only evidence for his love is his erotic attachment to her. Having murdered a police officer, Michel is on the run and trying to get money to get to Italy for much of the film. He is reckless, somewhat immature, and starry-eyed. His persona as a "gangster," complete with fedora and suit, is directly connected to his admiration for old Hollywood movie stars like Humphrey Bogart. In contrast to those craggier gentlemen, however, Michel has a soft boyish face that betrays a certain naivete. He longs to be a character in a noir, a desire which ultimately costs him his life, but in his heart he is a romantic.
Antonio Berrutti
Berrutti is only seen twice in the film, but he is the reason that Michel stays in Paris. Berrutti has Michel's money, which Michel needs in order to flee to Italy. In the final scene, Berrutti tries to give Michel his gun, throwing it on the street in a definitive moment.
Police Inspector Vital
Vital is the police inspector hot on Michel's trail. The inspector knows all of the low life criminals in Paris, but it's Patricia who eventually gives up Michel to Vital after deciding she doesn't want him to love her. In the final scene, Vital shoots Michel in the back, killing him.
The Novelist
The novelist is an acclaimed figure in Europe and is attended by a throng of eager journalists who want to hear his opinion on everything. He has a casual, somewhat flip attitude towards all the philosophical questions posed to him. In contrast to Michel, who is physical and instinctive, the novelist is cerebral and somewhat pretentious. He shows admiration for Patricia when she asks a question.
