Le Samouraï - Ending Explained

The film builds toward Jef's final contract: he is hired to kill Valérie, the witness who saved him. He returns to the nightclub, puts on his white gloves, and openly points his gun at her in front of everyone. She asks, 'Why, Jef?' and he replies, 'I was paid to.' The police, lying in wait, shoot him dead. The twist is revealed when the Superintendent checks Jef's gun and finds it empty. Jef never intended to kill her; he staged his own death ('suicide by cop') to uphold his code of honor (never kill a benefactor/witness who stayed silent) while fulfilling the contract's literal motion. He chose to die rather than be captured or compromise his integrity.

The Romantic Suicide: Some critics interpret Jef's death not just as adherence to a code, but as an act of love or protection for Valérie, the only person who showed him mercy.

Schizophrenic Projection: A psychological reading suggests the entire film is a projection of a mentally disturbed loner (the 'tiger in the jungle'), with the police and gangsters representing his internal demons closing in.

The Ghost Theory: Given the opening shot where Jef looks like a corpse and the gray, purgatorial atmosphere, some interpret Jef as a ghost or spirit who is already dead, simply acting out a final ritual before fading away.