In "Pépé le Moko or the Impossibility of being French in the 1930's, Martin O'Shaughnessy uses an interesting aanalyitical framework to show how the film Pépé le Moko helps remind us that, "A forward and outward-looking, civilizing, modern, virile power and an ageing, decrepit, introspective and xenophobic nation just would not gel" In particular, he says the tensions are worked out in the arenas of national identity, the formation and/or sense of community, and in gender.
Nowhere is this seen clearer than in the figure of Slimane--the potential antagonist or protagonist of the film, depending on how one might see the right way to work out the French empire (even if it was in the Third Republic, the colonial agenda was strong and running in Algieria).
The Inspector Slimane proves his value as an good French national loyalist by patiently working to capture a clear enemy of the state--a bank robber. Similarly, his style of integration in the Casbah might suggest the French national apparatus can work with diverse cultural players in diverse settings to bring these diverse communities in line with French national principles. Finally, his recognition that females (Inés and Gaby) held more power than they were formally granted tilts the balance toward including women within "The Republic" (i.e. French national identity).
Of course, another side (with some supporting points brought out in O'Shaughnessy's piece) is that he was devisive and took advantage of characters stuck in a liminal state (no fixed identity).
The popularity of the movie is because he can conveniently serve both audiences (those that see him as a protaganist and those who seem him as an antagonist.
