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Elevator to the Gallows
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Elevator to the Gallows | |
|---|---|
 Original theatrical poster. |
|
| Directed by | Louis Malle |
| Produced by | Jean Thuillier |
| Written by | Noël Calef Louis Malle Roger Nimier |
| Starring | Jeanne Moreau Maurice Ronet Georges Poujouly Yori Bertin |
| Music by | Miles Davis |
| Cinematography | Henri Decaë |
| Editing by | Léonide Azar |
| Distributed by | Rialto Pictures |
| Release date(s) |  January 29, 1958 June 10, 1961 |
| Running time | 88 min |
| Country | France |
| Language | French |
| IMDb profile | |
Elevator to the Gallows (French: Ascenseur pour l'échafaud), aka Lift to the Scaffold, is a 1958 French film directed by Louis Malle.
A French classic often associated by critics with the film noir style, it stars Jeanne Moreau and Maurice Ronet. The score by Miles Davis (Ascenseur pour l'Échafaud) is central to the film's effect. Critic Phil Johnson has described its soundtrack as "the loneliest trumpet sound you will ever hear, and the model for sad-core music ever since. Hear it and weep."[1]
The central characters, a pair of lovers, plan the perfect crime - the murder of the woman's husband, Simon Carala. The murderer, Julien Tavernier, abseils up the office block to kill the husband in his office without being seen, but on going to his car, realises that he has left the rope dangling outside the building. Leaving his expensive car unlocked, he returns to remove the evidence, but in doing so becomes trapped in the lift as the building closes down for the weekend. In the meantime, the car is stolen by a young couple, Louis and Veronique. They stay overnight with a German couple at a motel. When Louis attempts to steal their luxury car, he is caught out and shoots them with Julien's handgun that he found in the car. While the police still consider Carala's death a suicide, Julien is charged with the killing of the Germans, and his lift-related alibi is not believed. Much of the suspense comes from Julien's attempt to escape from the lift. Although he succeeds, the murder plot is eventually discovered through photographs taken by the young couple with the camera they find in his car.
- ^ Phil Johnson, "Discs: Jazz—Miles Davis/Ascenseur Pour L'Echafaud (Fontana)," Independent on Sunday, March 14, 2004.
- Elevator to the Gallows at the Internet Movie Database
- "Louis Malle on the Ground Floor" essay by Terrence Rafferty at The Criterion Collection
- Elevator to the Gallows: A Jazz Film of Collaborative Integrity, a detailed academic discussion of film and score, with clips
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