Films You Should Know: LE TROU (1960)
Here's the first of a new regular column at OWF in which Jonathan Walton delves deep into the sparse corners of cinema's past to find those classic movies that any self respecting film buff should know but you probably haven't heard of. An alternate title for this feature could easily have been; "The Best Films You Have Never Seen". For the introductory column we start with...
Le Trou (1960)
Its possible youve never heard of Jacques Beckers little-known prison film Le Trou, but the fact that legendary French director Jean-Pierre Melville regarded the movie as the greatest French film ever made, should tell you that youve been missing out on something special. A favourite of the French New Wave directors, and championed by Francois Truffaut amongst others, Le Trou seems to have fallen through the cracks in recent years to become one of the great over-looked films. The film tells the story of Claude Gaspard (Marc Michel), a young husband sent to prison for the attempted murder of his wife. Awaiting trial in Paris in La Santé Prison, Gaspard is transferred to an already over-crowded cell with four other inmates, who instantly voice their displeasure at having to accommodate the new prisoner. Suspicious of Gaspard from the outset, his cellmates begin to question him about the background to his crime. Gaspards case is not simple. When his wife discovered he was having an affair with her sister, she attacked him with a shotgun. During the ensuing struggle, Gaspard accidentally shot her, wounding her in the shoulder. Claudes honesty and naivety appears to win over the trust of the men, and they in turn confide in him, explaining their decision to escape from prison by digging a whole le trou of the title in the cell floor. Its not long before Gaspard is treated as one of the gang, helping do his share of the digging and exchanging food, cigarettes and life stories with the other men. Amongst the many films about life behind bars and prison escapes, what marks Beckers film as something special one to watch above all others? Firstly theres Beckers intense attention to detail and quest for realism. Becker avoids the melodramatic, opting instead to present prison life in all its claustrophobia and mundanity. Simple prison procedures are recreated and observed with documentary-style realism and patience. In one scene we watch for several minutes as a guard inspects the packages sent to inmates, painstakingly cutting through saucisson, bars of soap and packets of butter in search of any hidden contraband. Long takes and wide shots are employed to present the unbroken monotony of prison life, as scenes are allowed to play out unedited to reflect the long moments that make up a prison day. We watch the five prisoners silently eating in their cell, devoting all their attention to the food in front of them. Roland says, we do nothing round here but eat, and thats precisely what they continue to do sit and eat. Theres no dramatic justification to scenes like these - theyre not integral to the progression of the plot, so why include them? By representing the finer details of prison life, Becker ensures that the audience believe completely in the environment within which the story takes place, never questioning the veracity of the events presented to us. Beckers devotion to realism filters down through every aspect of the films production. The script was adapted from a novel written by José Giovanni, who was involved in the real-life 1947 escape
plot upon which his novel is based. In pre-production, Giovanni introduced Becker to Jean Keraudy, one of his cellmates and collaborators from the real-life escape, upon whom he based the character of Roland. Keraudy was the mastermind behind the escape a technical genius with the knack for turning everyday objects into the tools required to tunnel their way out of prison. In some of the films most memorable scenes we see this ingenuity at work, as Roland makes a periscope from a toothbrush and mirror, a key from a window latch and an hourglass out of two bottles smuggled out of the prison infirmary. Becker realised instantly that no actor could believably recreate the manual dexterity essential to Rolands character, so he cast Keraudy to play himself in the film. Just watching Keraudys hands in action, with his half-amputated finger and thumb, you believe that these are the hands of a man with the necessary skills to pull off this escape. This isnt the movie magic of smoke and mirrors this is the real world. Its Beckers naturalistic approach and minimalist directing style that gives Le Trou an unquestionable authenticity. In the scene when the men begin digging the hole in the cell floor, we are presented with one unbroken 4-minute shot, where the cellmates take turns to hammer the concrete floor with an iron bar. Theres no fast-paced editing, dramatic music score or kinetic camera movement. With Becker, less is more. By recreating real situations and letting them play out naturally, Becker proves that the events alone are dramatic enough, without the need for heavy-handed direction. The films set designer made a real concrete slab for the scene, as Becker wanted the audience to believe wholeheartedly in the time and effort it took for the men to break through the floor. The scene is instantly believable. We can see for ourselves how hard the floor is, and the dramatic tension arises from our fear that theyll never be able to make it through. Becker never relies on cheap psychological moments to make us empathise with his characters. Unlike most other prison escape movies, theres no evil oppressive prison regime from which the men are desperate to escape. On the contrary, the guards and the warden are presented as reasonable men, at times both understanding and lenient. Its simply human nature that leads us to empathise with the five inmates and yearn for their escape plan to succeed. We know little of their crimes or their backgrounds, and Becker doesnt over complicate things by telling us things we dont need to know. Theres no hint of sentimentality or pretence about the characters these are simply five men who dream of being free, and its that dream that the audience relate to. The mens laborious efforts and their constant fear of discovery builds the tension towards the eve of their escape, when Gaspard suddenly learns that his wife has dropped the charges against him. With a possible release pending, he is then faced with the moral dilemma of whether to continue with the escape, or to turn in his cellmates, who he now considers friends. With suspicion growing between the men, the plot twist that follows includes one of the greatest reveals in the history of cinema. Sadly, Becker, who had been suffering with illness throughout the films production, died just two weeks after completing the final cut of the film. Upon its original release, Le Trou was poorly received, but in the years that have since passed, the film has become widely regarded among critics as one of the masterpieces of French cinema. All the more surprising then that it should remain largely unknown beyond the shores of Beckers native France. Despite being fifty years old this year, theres an inherent timeless quality and emotional truth to the film, which resonates with contemporary audiences. In a modern age of overblown film hype and publicity, its rare to be surprised by films anymore, but any viewer unearthing this hidden gem is in for an unforgettable experience.