Spoonatects Am i the only one who thinks........Average?

Tobias Burrows It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

Philippa All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

Logan By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

blanche-2 Louis Malle made his striking directorial debut in this French film, "Elevator to the Gallows" in 1958, with the script cowritten by him and Roger Nimier.Jeanne Moreau plays an unhappily married woman who colludes with her lover Tavernier (Maurice Ronet) to kill her husband (Jean Wall), for whom he works. Tavernier takes a gun, goes up to his boss' office via a rope out his own office window, and kills him. As he's leaving the building, he sees that he did not collect the rope. He leaves his car running, leaving his coat and gun inside while he runs in to retrieve the rope. Unfortunately, while he's in the elevator, the building is closed, and that includes the power. He's stuck.Meanwhile, two young people, an impulsive, cagey young man and his girlfriend from a flower shop (Georges Poujouly, Yori Bertin) steal Tavernier's fancy car and take off.Fabulous noir set in rainy France with captivating scenery and Miles Davis music, perfectly catching the atmosphere - Moreau, not knowing where Tavernier is, walking in the rain, going from bar to bar trying to find him; the two young lovers on an adventure, the girl with a romantic, Juliet-like attitude, the boy headstrong; Tavernier, smoking in the elevator as he works on how to get out; people still talking of the Occupation and war in Algiers...Malle weaves a fascinating story of fate and random circumstance.There isn't a lot of dialogue in this film, but the actions say it all. Paris in the rain and suspense - it doesn't get much better.

evening1 Intriguing policier with a very off-beat plot and a neat little reminder about the best-laid plans of mice and men. As much as we may think that we can plan our lives, a simple little thing -- say, taking an elevator, or leaving a camera in one's car -- may turn out to have life-or-death consequences. I found it quite interesting that the two romantic leads, Mrs. Carala (Jeanne Moreau) and Tavernier (Maurice Ronet), spend the entire length of the film apart.I think the movie falters toward its end, when Mrs. Carala turns detective and the police case falls too neatly into place. However, I enjoyed the little steps of the cat-and-mouse game.The younger, all-too-ordinary, unintelligent lovers' antics, and the way their lives go down the tubes in a heartbeat, is fascinating to watch and, sadly, not that hard to believe.This was a fun, if not totally coherent, highly atmospheric viewing experience. It kept my attention thoroughly.

Spikeopath Ascenseur pour l'échafaud (AKA: Elevator to the Gallows/Lift to the Scaffold) is directed by Louis Malle and co-written by Malle, Roger Nimier and Noël Calef (novel). It stars Jeanne Moreau, Maurice Ronet, Georges Poujouly, Yori Bertin and Jean Wall. Music is by Miles Davis and cinematography by Henri Decaë. A little ole devil this one, a sly slow pacer that itches away at your skin. Rightly seen as a bridging movie between the classic film noir cycle and the nouvelle vague, Malle's movie is in truth straightforward on narrative terms. Julien Tavernier (Ronet) is going to kill husband of his lover, Florence Carala (Moreau), who also happens to be his boss, but upon executing the perfect murder, he, through his own absent mindedness, winds up stuck in a lift close to the crime scene. Outside Florence is frantically awaiting his arrival so as to begin their life together in earnest, but when a couple of young lovers steal Julien's car, Florence gets the wrong end of the stick and a sequence of events lead to Julien and Florence hitching that ride to the gallows. Simplicity of narrative be damned, Malle's movie is a classic case of that mattering not one jot. There is style to burn here, with bleak atmospherics dripping from every frame, and Miles Davis' sultry jazz music hovers over proceedings like a sleazy grim reaper. The ironic twists in the writing come straight off the bus to noirville, putting stings in the tale, the smart reverse of the norm finding Moreau (sensual) wandering the streets looking for her male lover, while elsewhere he's in isolation and a doppleganger murder scenario is cunningly being played out. Decaë's photography has a moody desperation about it that so fits the story, the use of natural light making fellow French film makers sit up and take notice. While the dialogue, and the caustic aside to arms dealings, ensures we know that Malle can be a sly old fox. He really should have done more noir like pictures. A film that convinces us that Julien and Florence are deeply in love and passionate about each other, and yet they never are once together in the whole movie! It's just one of the many wonderful things about Louis Malle's excellent picture. Remember folks, the camera never lies... 9/10

dlee2012 "Lift to the Scaffold" is quite a stunning film and a neat summation of all the lessons that had been learned about the art of film making up until the point of its release.Ostensibly a noir thriller dotted with elements of French farce, it makes complex use of cinematographic devices to develop its key themes. Largely the film is about the role of fate and how an unfortunate series of events leads to justice being served. It is also about how a woman's vengeful fury serves to destroy not only her lover but herself.That woman's psychological state throughout the film is highlighted in myriad ways. A lone figure, she walks aimlessly through places of socialisation in the city, such as cafés, oblivious to the rain that reflects her darkening mood. The use of a whispered monologue conveys her thoughts and a bleak jazz soundtrack her mood. Mobile cameras, outdoor steps and superb lighting during the close-ups of Moreau's face heighten the sense of isolation in a very concrete, modern world.The perfect crime is undone by coincidences including a telephone call at precisely the wrong moment, an elevator's power being cut for the night, the highly unlikely event of a car theft and the killer being accused of the wrong murder.Throughout the film, commentary is made on the nature of war. The murder victim is a ruthless profiteer who trades on the misery of others yet meets a violent end because he cannot pleasure his wife adequately. The murderer is known to be a ruthless, former military man yet there are questions if he is brave enough to kill now he can no longer hide in the cowardly world of the armed forces. The events in Indo-China and Algeria are also referenced as places where France is inflicting suffering to make the business world richer.There are also references to the German occupation of France but, whereas the Germans had moved on, they also note that the French are still committing atrocities in the name of imperialism.Despite this bleak narrative, there are moments of farce. Besides the key event of the car theft, a black cat appearing, ridiculously, on the tenth story balcony of the office block foretells of the disaster awaiting the murderer. Likewise, when he finally escapes from the lift, the vehicle standing where he had left his car is a comical three-wheeler.The interrogation scene is wonderfully filmed, the three key actors in that setting standing out from a black backdrop. Their drama is amusing and ironic to the audience as they know the killer is being interrogated for the wrong murders but it is played with total conviction and integrity.The final scenes are beautiful with the convicting photographic image fading into view. Likewise, the latter photos that convict Moreau's character lie tranquilly in their chemical baths against a black background in the dark room. Her reflection is then scene in this bath gazing down at herself in horror and guilt as she realises she is condemned to a lengthy prison sentence. It is her lack of forgiveness and quickness to accuse her lover that has led to her downfall. All she can do is futilely stroke his image, rippling the chemical bath.For its wonderful cinematography, lighting, music and acting, this film is a revelation. Likewise, it is a brave film commenting on the then-current events of what France was doing to its overseas colonies. The farcical humour and deliberately-contrived plot may be hard for some non-French to digest and, indeed, maybe an outright distraction but there is still a wonderful film to enjoy if one looks beyond that. Indeed, Malle here proves himself a craftsman at the top of his profession.