Julien Tavernier (Maurice Ronet) finds himself in a tight squeeze in French crime classic
ASCENSEUR POUR L’ECHAFAUD (ELEVATOR TO THE GALLOWS) (Louis Malle, 1957)
IFC Center
323 Sixth Ave. at Third St.
January 8-10, 11:00 pm
212-924-7771
www.ifccenter.com/series/weekend-classics/la-creme-du-crime
Louis Malle’s first feature-length fiction film, following THE SILENT WORLD (made with Jacques Cousteau), is a classic French noir that comes with all the trimmings — and can now be seen in an excellent 35mm print with new subtitles. Jeanne Moreau stars as Florence Carala, who is married to ruthless business tycoon Simon (Jean Wall) but is carrying on an affair with Simon’s right-hand man, Julien Tavernier (Maurice Ronet). Julien plans the perfect murder — or so he thinks, until he has to go back to retrieve a crucial piece of evidence and gets trapped on the elevator. While he struggles to find a way out and Florence waits for him anxiously at a neighborhood bistro, young couple Louis (Georges Poujouly) and Veronique (Yori Bertin) take off in Julien’s convertible and get into some serious trouble of their own. Mistaken identity, cold-blooded killings, jealousy, and one of the greatest film scores ever — by Miles Davis, recorded in one overnight session — make ELEVATOR TO THE GALLOWS a splendid debut from one of the world’s finest filmmakers. The screening is part of the IFC Center’s twelve-film series of classic French crime thrillers, which continues on weekend nights at 11:00 through April 4; the upcoming lineup includes Jean-Luc Godard’s PIERROT LE FOU, Henri-Georges Clouzot’s QUAI DES ORFEVRES, and Jules Dassin’s RIFIFI, and that’s just January. Keep watching this space for more select reviews.