Elevator to the Gallows
Composite Score: 86.47
Starring: Jeanne Moreau, Maurice Ronet, Georges Poujouly, Yori Bertin, Jean Wall, Elga Andersen, Micheline Bona, Gisèle Grandpré, and Gérard Darrieu
Director: Louis Malle
Writers: Roger Nimier and Louis Malle
Genres: Crime, Drama, Thriller
MPAA Rating: Not Rated
Box Office: $431,784 worldwide
My take on Watching This Film:
Elevator to the Gallows is Louis Malle’s film adaptation of Noël Calef’s novel of the same name about a pair of lovers whose plan to murder the woman’s husband unravels when the man becomes stuck in his work’s elevator. The film stars Jeanne Moreau and Maurice Ronet as the leads, Florence Carala and Julien Tavernier, joined by Georges Poujouly and Yori Bertin as the young couple, Louis and Véronique, whose joyride in Julien’s car really complicates things. The film, Malle’s feature debut as a director, also features a catchy jazz score by the iconic Miles Davis. The film has received particular praise for its score and for Malle’s “realistic” approach to filming his characters, particularly Jeanne Moreau as Florence, whose scenes of morose wandering and wondering remain some of the most poignant of the film.
What Malle has given us with Elevator to the Gallows is a fun twist on the genres of crime and noir (though some might argue against its inclusion in that genre), crafting a film that is equal parts crime thriller and comedy of errors. He and his fellow writers recognize the potential thrills of watching people who are so inept at committing crimes without ever turning the film into a farce. The severity of the characters’ actions, the reality of their consequences, and the score from Davis behind it all ensure that, unfortunate as Florence, Julien, Louis, and Véronique may be, their story remains one of drama and realism. Even as it draws you into the parallel stories of these two sets of lovers, rooting on the one hand for them to succeed and escape justice, it never lets you forget the criminality of its story, balancing the listlessness of its age with the legality of the mainstream brilliantly. When you then add to that the excellence of Malle’s filmmaking, Henri Decaë’s cinematography, and Moreau’s gripping performance, you are left with a truly excellent crime thriller that’ll keep you on the edge of your seat until the final, satisfying conclusion.
In Elevator to the Gallows, Louis Malle combines crime thriller with the comedy of errors to give us an entirely new take on what crime films can be, elevated even more by some excellent filmmaking and a beautiful jazz score from Miles Davis, all of which work together to earn it a spot among the greats. Fans of more traditional crime films might take issue with some aspects of the film’s execution, arguing about its contrivances, but it’s such a morbidly fun time that most viewers will find it hard to look away. You can currently stream this film on Max if you’d like to check it out in the near future, and I highly recommend that you do.
