Author:palmiro from Chicago United States 23 February 2003
This film is riveting in its attention to the details of a prison escape and to the relations between the men involved. And even if you're not interested in the Marxist vision that inspires Becker in this last film of his, you will still be captivated by the story. In any case, to understand Becker's vision, I will necessarily have to give away the story so beware (and my analysis also makes the film sound much more schematic and polemical than it will appear to you on viewing it):
***SPOILER***
At the beginning of the film one of actors (clearly a car mechanic) approaches the camera and tells us that we are about to see a true story, his story. We are led to believe that it is the story of an escape from prison, and indeed we are taken to Paris' largest prison where a group of 4 cellmates, already plotting their escape, finds that they are unexpectedly joined by a new cellmate: a well-dressed (all prisoners wear their street clothes), somewhat effete, young man who nominally sells cars at (presumably) his father-in-law's dealership--in any case, it's clear that he doesn't really have to work or at least work hard for a living. On the other hand, the other four are clearly working-class guys who've drawn a bad card in life. After debating among themselves whether to let the pretty boy in on their plot, they decide to do so after they learn that he's in for attempted murder and stands to have a strong reason to want to break out.
Becker shows the extraordinary ingenuity of the working-class prisoners in contriving tools, in developing a postal system between cells, and in setting up a way of telling time where there are no clocks or church bells. The implication is: we, the working class, have the minds, the manual dexterity, and the willingness to work and to build our own civilization (minus the bourgeoisie). Meanwhile, the bourgeois type is astonished at how the working-class types are able to organize and think for themselves ('I've never met men like you before')- -and, above all, he is moved by their willingness to share their victuals and their plans for freedom with him. And it is just this solidarity and mutual support which Becker believes represents an alternative way to organize human society--an alternative to the self-centered world of the bourgeois. Note, for example, the character of 'Joe' who opts to not join in the escape because the police would harass his mother to death, but who still does not rat on the others even though it's clear he will have to do additional time and time in solitary after the breakout.
Becker has a nice touch as well in the way he portrays the prison guards, also from the working-class: generally friendly towards the 'boys' in prison, with perhaps an authoritarian streak in them but no suggestion of a sadistic, brutish nature. So when 'Roland' says, 'Poor Gaspard,' after the latter has betrayed them (it was clear that he'd been tempted earlier to do so when he saw the taxi from the manhole cover), it is evident that the only real 'brute' is the bourgeois, who, in the end, will always turn on his pals (and his fellow man in general)if it serves his interest and who is bereft of the fellow-feeling which undergirds working-class life.
So what about the claim that this is a true story? The actor who plays 'Roland' is a non-professional, but it's hard to imagine that he could be as young as he is if he had actually attempted 3 previous escapes and had to serve another long stretch for the failed attempt portrayed in the film. Instead, it's the 'true story' of the working class: a class dominated by the bourgeoisie but which resists and has the capability to guide itself without the bourgeoisie; a class which embodies the values of solidarity and the dignity of work--values which can become the foundation of an alternative civilization.
Probably, to really get "Le Trou", this splendid, intense movie, you have to be conscious that the great Jacques Becker was dying during the making of the film. A quiet stoicism permeates this work of art. The story is supposed to be very sad, but it isn't. The guys on the screen are too tough, by no means apt to mourn their dire destiny or, metaphorically, to ask for the viewer's sympathy.
We have the true story of the hole dug by a bunch of in-mates to escape from a jail in Paris. The screenplay is taken from a novel of the distinguished writer and film-maker Jose' Giovanni, himself formerly a convict. Becker chooses to tell the story in the simplest, neatest possible way. No music at all, an essential, dry, sharp yet powerful dialog. The in-mates do their job, to try to escape. The director avoids the annoying cliché, typical of the American jail-movies, of showing the wardens as sadistic torturers. They are tough and strict, they don't like but they feel no hate for the prisoners. The wardens just do their job, that's all. In fact, there are no really despicable characters in the film. At his last appointment with the art of cinema, Becker seems to accept and forgive all human beings.
A brilliant idea is to show how the guys turn common objects and waste iron into the tools needed for the escape (a key, a lamp, a pick, a sand-glass). The little periscope made with a tooth-brush gives raise to a shocking scene, few seconds of great cinema. We follow the in-mates' apparently endless, exhausting labor of digging and sewing. That should be rather boring for the viewer, but it isn't. How comes there's not a single moment of bore in the film? That's the privilege of Art.
The work of the camera and the black and white photography are sensational, and convey the intense emotions of the characters. The psychological study is made in such an understated way that you may overlook it at a first view. But, after seeing the movie a second time, and knowing the development of the story, you fully appreciate how the psychology of the characters is treated, with accuracy and depth. The actors make an excellent job. This is stunning, thinking that "Le Trou" was the first movie for Philippe Leroy and Michel Constantin, later prominent actors of French cinema. And Jean Keraudy wasn't a professional actor, he was one of the in-mates that actually dug the hole fourteen years earlier! (at least, this is stated by himself at the beginning of the movie, and is testified in several books on French cinema)
Are there deep messages in the film? Two wardens bring a fly to feed a spider. There is the spider, a patent symbol of death, ghastly in its immobility. Two prisoners are peeping and wondering: what the hell are the wardens doing? Got no idea. And who cares, after all? Maybe that is Becker's dry, ironic message. Don't be too deep. Fight against bad luck, be stoic and brave. Who cares, after all?
My opinion is that the artist Becker, displaying the same toughness of the guys on the screen, just fought to leave us a major work of art. Our task of viewers is to enjoy and love it. "Le Trou" is an unforgettable film, which honors the art of cinema.
Jacques Becker's "Le Trou" is one of the greatest of all prison-break films. No film lover should miss it. It is every bit as masterful and tense as other milestones of this subgenre, including John Sturges' "The Great Escape," Robert Bresson's masterpiece "A Man Escaped," and Don Siegel's "Escape from Alcatraz." The meticulous preparation for the escape is a nail-biter, with many adrenaline-inducing close calls. The ringer: Will the newly exonerated prisoner stay with the group and escape or rat on the others? Those seeking pure entertainment or those seeking existentialist philosophical fare will be equally pleased. A memorable movie experience.
*
Author:muddlyjames from Hemet, Ca. 4 February 2002
This most powerful of escape stories is a wonderful exposition of the most basic human qualities, ingenuity and cooperation, and the innate drive toward freedom that brings these qualities into being.
While the theme of transcendence is certainly present (although not be-labored) as in A MAN ESCAPED, it is interesting that, in direct contrast to Bresson's work, transcendence is here achieved through work WITH others on a task. The inmates form a unique brotherhood through their joint reliance. This allows them to be IN the prison while not OF it and is quietly visible from the early moments of the film. We see this group bond deepened through each risk taken, each chisel blow against a concrete wall, and we become emotionally tied to the characters' quest simply through observing their effort (it is amazing how dramatic hammering away at a concrete wall can be). No verbal exposition is necessary, no creation of characters and their pasts intrudes to distract us from their task, which IS the drama.
Indeed Becker's film is as notable for what is left out as for what is included. There are no prison "types" created, his style is restrained to the point of being transparent, not to the point of calling attention to itself as "bare" or "ascetic" as Bresson's is. We get no exposition of the horrors of prison life; just enough detailing of the regimentation, drabness of environment, and lack of personal space to make us aware of the institution's suffocating presence. There are no sudden surprises or plot shifts. Well, maybe one. The shot in the mirror near the end of the film is so surprising that I literally couldn't take it in for a few seconds, I thought it had to be a dream: that's how involved with the characters I was!
Finally, there is no use of music to pump up the suspense. There IS, however, a powerful and unique use of sound. We hear, in an almost hallucinatory fashion, every thump, clang, and wail within the prison walls and, during the digging scenes, Becker apparently uses a dual soundtrack combining naturalistic sound with heightened effects of the digger's grunts, heavy breathing, and THUMPS of metal against rock. Again this serves to effectively involve us with physical/emotional effort of their task. The cacophony the end of the film harshly accents our sense of disturbance and loss.
It is also worth noting that the apparent "innocent" in the film is the only one who does not achieve transcendence. While he may legitimately gain his freedom, he remains locked within the bounds of his own ego ("poor Pierre" says the leader of the break). Another interesting contrast (reply?) to Bresson.Altogether a powerful statement that humans at work can be intrinsically dramatic subject matter, that the most simple of subjects can be the most visually entrancing (and emotionally resonant) and a grand illustration of the maxim that "God (and/or art) is in the details". 10/10
Immediate background:Jacques Becker was dying when he filmed "le trou,and he made it his legacy;it's the tragedy of man caught on the web of life -an admirable metaphor shows two wardens feeding a spider in the undergrounds with a fly-,and anyway unable to escape from the final death.
The first thing to bear is mind is that,calling "le trou" a "prison movie" would be an insult.Although adapted from a Jose Giovanni's book -Giovanni had been himself in jail for some time and his depictions are as close to reality as can be-,Becker masterfully transcends his subject and gives something definitely new.Some said it was the final link between "la nouvelle vague" and what the highbrows pejoratively -and thoroughly unfairly- call "cinema de qualité" but Becker had predated that overrated new wave by almost ten years :"rendez-vous de juillet" had already almost everything the young Turks would bring later.
First shock is the use of the wide screen,the cinemascope,which Becker had never experimented before;and he achieved the impossible: using this device for a story which takes place ,either in the four walls of a jail,or in the undergrounds and the sewers .The only picture of the outside is seen when the two inmates open a manhole.And the second one is the sound:there's no music at all,except for the final cast and credits -saving the cast and credits for the end was very rare in the contemporary French cinema -But the soundtrack resembles some kind of musique concrete with its relentless thumps, the whispers and the screams inside the cell,the creaking of the doors ,the waters in the sewer;and the final cacophony -which is not unlike the one which Manliewicz used in "suddenly last Summer" the year before- packs a real wallop.
Another Becker's tour de force is his description of the prison life:he avoids all the clichés that mar so many "prison movies" (the overpraised "Whatsisname redemption" is no exception):here, the wardens are,most of the time ,kind and friendly,the relationships with the inmates remain polite ,maybe sometimes too much:particularly those between the young man (Marc Michel) and the head warden are almost paternalistic.
Another Becker's permanent feature comes back to the fore in "le trou" :friendship,solidarity ,which was already present in "rendez-vous de juillet" and "touchez pas au grisbi".Here it's pure manly friendship and it seems that a certain misogyny is infiltrating Becker's world:during the 2 hours + running time of the movie,we only see one young girl (Catherine Spaak) behind a grille,for a very short while.The only positive woman whom we' ll never see is (naturally) one of the five inmates ' s(Michel Constantin) mother("I almost killed her when I was sent to jail so I do not want to take a chance and try to escape")
SPOILER:But even this world where five inmates share everything,where their friendship is "more than I 've ever had "(Marc Michel's character) is collapsing;the first cracks were already here in "rendez-vous de juillet" when some of the young students were giving up on their plans ,to the main hero's (Daniel Gelin)disappointment.But "touchez pas au grisbi" took friendship over everything including money."Le trou" reveals the true nature of man,even if the informer seems completely desperate at the end of the movie.The mammoth task they did ,the hole '(le trou) is nothing but a cul-de -sac and it epitomizes,in a Hustonian way -we're closer to Huston than to Godard ,fortunately,the vanity of everything man can do to escape from his fate,and in the case of Becker ,to escape from death.END OF SPOILER
Had Becker ended his career with his three precedent movies (Ali-Baba,Arsène Lupin ,Montparnasse 19),his former masterpieces (Casque d'or,Goupi Main Rouges ,rendez-vous de juillet),could have been tarnished by association.But "Le trou" ,his final masterpiece stands in little danger of bringing this about.
The thing that surprises me the most about "Le Trou" is how minimalist it is. Unlike most other prison dramas (such as the overrated "Shawshank Redemption"), this isn't weighed down by pointless subplots or needless histrionics. This simply presents a group of characters, their plan to escape from prison, and the execution (and aftermath) of the plan. Best of all, it proves you don't need all that needless filler to make a thrilling story like this. The movie isn't about anything but the break, and manages to be completely engrossing for an entire two hours plus running time. This is a raw, gritty, and entirely realistic depiction of a stock story thats been done to death. Nearly fifty years later, its still the best prison break film ever made.
What elevates this is the sheer virtuosity in the craft of the film. This was the legendary French director Jacques Becker's last film, and while he didn't plan for it to be his swan song, there couldn't be a more fitting one imaginable. All his themes and techniques from his previous work are fully in bloom here. Becker truly created a masterpiece. The performances are very good for the material they're given and have more depth and nuance than initially appearing. The film is all about simplicity and character interaction, which is exactly what makes it a masterpiece. (9/10)
I watched this masterpiece first time before 10 years and I was stunned. Now, I watched it before few days again and I am really surprised how this remarkable movie functions and become better and better. It is really ingenious portrait of human interaction and cooperation, great "prison-escape" drama that bring us unique way of telling story (in long shots) looking so realistic and powerful.
Le Trou played on TV the other night, and thus gives me a chance to evaluate it after 20 years or so. The direction is magnificent: Becker was a genius at refining the elements of the story down to a bare minimum. Space is used well; the close-ups of men banging on concrete with improvised tools in a cramped space are very effective, they look like burrowing animals. Ghislain Cloquet was a master of black-and-white camerawork; he shot Mouchette and Au hasard, Balthazar for Bresson, Nuit et brouillard for Resnais, Le Feu follet for Malle, all great films made greater by Cloquet's work.
The endless dull routine enlivened by subterfuge--stealing materials needed for digging and making puppets to stand in for sleeping prisoners is brilliantly captured. If the prisoners are bored, so are the staff--the warden is desperate for some conversation with Gaspard, or with anybody. Geo's problem is a little hard to understand, I thought he'd want to go through with the plan. Otherwise I rate it very highly indeed.
*
Becker's Swan Song: Too Good To Be Just Another Prison Movie
Jacques Becker's swan song is a real gem of a film. Le Trou has such an amazing kinetic rhythm to it that one both feels and forgets the claustrophobic environs. Based on a real story turned into a novel by one of the "escapees", the film has excellent casting, wonderful (candel-lit!) cinematography and crisp dialog among its other advantages.
The director was terminally ill during the shoot and was to die after making the final cut. Watching this classic now some four decades since auteur's death, one can only wonder what an artist it would take to demand and achieve such breathtaking perfection in art while combating death at the same time.
Do not let yourself be put off by "yet another prison-movie!" talk. It is too good to be just that. So much so that it could merit comparison with Bresson's "A Man Escaped". A very deserving 10 out of 10.
*
Jacques Becker's Lasting Opus
Author:harry-76 from Cleveland, Ohio USA 20 October 2000
Before his life was cut short prematurely, Director Jacques Becker created his very personal film, "Le Trou" ("The Hole"). Using mostly then nonprofessional actors, M. Becker elicited extremely naturalistic and powerful performances in a reportedly true-life prison-escape drama set in France.
It was especially interesting to see Marc Michel in his film debut. Made four years before Michel scored a hit as Roland in "Les Parapluies de Cherbourg," Michel here subtely creates a fascinating character. His work is seemingly effortless, yet always intriguing. He stands at the center of a group of convicts planning a daring escape--a group which has difficulty in fully trusting his loyalty.
The routine of prison life as well as the actual escape is done with such detail that the viewer feels part of the action. The black-and-white photography enhances the realism of the presentation, done without a musical background.Generally a "forgotten film," "Le Trou" is a carefully constructed prison drama, most convincingly executed. It is a credit to both a hard working cast and director.
Director Jacques Becker died two weeks after completing the film.
*
Director Jacques Becker used mainly non-actors for purposes of authenticity. In fact, one of his choices was actually involved in the 1947 escape.
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Jean-Pierre Melville regarded this as one of the greatest French films ever made.
*
La Sante prison was replicated right down to the smallest details, thanks to the help of the three actual members of the escape whom Jacques Becker hired to serve as production consultants.
*
The film was completed according to the director's wishes after his death, but producer Serge Silberman had it reduced from the initial 140-minute version by about 24 minutes to enhance its commercial possibilities. The missing footage remains lost.
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The soundtrack to this film is entirely Diegetic (the source of every sound is visible, or occurs on screen)
*
Shot over a period of 10 weeks.
*
Catherine Spaak got her big break when her uncredited brief appearance as Nicole in this film caught the eye of a Paris TV reporter. Sophia Loren happened to see the reporter's interview with Catherine on TV. She immediately thought she looked perfect for the lead role in "I dolci inganni" (Sweet Deceptions, 1960) which was being cast by her producer-husband Carlo Ponti.
A bord du remorqueur le Cyclone, le capitaine André Laurent risque sa vie tous les jours, pour sauver celle des autres. Il est marié à Yvonne, qui souhaite qu'il quitte ce métier. Celle-ci lui cache sa grave maladie. Le capitaine Laurent, doit quitter précipitamment la noce d'un de ses marins pour porter secours au cargo Mirva, laissant sa femme Yvonne et la mariée. Le sauvetage, après quelques péripéties, va réussir et les passagers sont secourus. Au matin, le Cyclone remorque le Mirva. André tombe amoureux de Catherine, la femme du capitaine renégat du Mirva et elle va devenir sa maîtresse. André s'apprête à quitter sa femme...
Le film Remorques est adapté du roman éponyme de Roger Vercel, sorti en 1935. Après un premier projet d'adaptation, signé Roger Vercel lui-même, et l'intervention des scénaristes Charles Spaak et André Cayatte qui ne satisfont pas complètement Jean Grémillon et Jean Gabin, Jacques Prévert est appelé à la rescousse[1]. Jacques Prévert modifie alors le scénario et écrit également les dialogues.
Tournage
Le tournage du film débute à Brest et à Guissény sur la plage du Vougot enjuillet1939 pour une quinzaine de jours d’extérieurs[2]. Pour ces scènes en extérieur, Michèle Morgan, retenue par le tournage d'un autre film, Les Musiciens du ciel de Georges Lacombe[3], ne peut se libérer que trois jours, juste le temps de tourner la scène centrale du film, sur la plage du Vougot[2]. De retour à Paris, l’équipe reprend le travail le11août1939 aux studios de Billancourt pour les scènes d'intérieur[2]. Le tournage est très vite interrompu le 3septembre1939 en raison de l'entrée en guerre de la France[1] et de la mobilisation de Gabin et Grémillon[2].
Le tournage d'un film de mer et de marins est souvent un cauchemar pour les producteurs et le réalisateur, Remorques n'échappera pas à la loi du genre: La production a pris le gros risque financier d'affréter un vrai remorqueur de haute mer et un cargo, mais la météo (exceptionnellement clémente alors que le scénario prévoit des scènes de tempête) , puis la défaite de 1940 et le bombardement de Brest compliquent gravement la situation.
Finalement, les plans larges du remorqueur en pleine tempête sont réalisés à l'aide de maquettes aux studios de Billancourt, alors que les plans des hommes embraquant la remorque sur la plage arrière sont bien filmés à bord d'un vrai navire...mais par un temps plutôt clément. Ceci peut interpeller un spectateur averti mais ne nuit pas vraiment à la crédibilité du film auprès du public moyen.
En avril1940 , le tournage reprend brièvement après la Blitzkrieg, pour vingt-cinq jours, grâce à une permission exceptionnelle accordée à Gabin et Grémillon, ainsi qu'à d'autres membres de l'équipe[2]. Celui-ci est de nouveau interrompu en juin1940 avec le début de l'occupation[1]. Faute de temps, certaines scènes ne seront pas réalisées, imposant des ellipses dans le montage[2]. Quand les Allemands sont sur le point d'entrer dans Paris, le producteur Joseph Lucachevitch s'embarque pour les États-Unis. Louis Daquin, l’assistant réalisateur, et le monteur Marcel Cravenne emportent les bobines pour les mettre en lieu sûr dans le Midi de la France[2].
Le tournage se termine finalement dans les studios de Boulogne durant le printemps et l'été 1941, quand Jean Grémillon est démobilisé[1],[2]. Entretemps, Michèle Morgan, puis Jean Gabin ont eux aussi rejoint les États-Unis[2]. Leur présence n'est heureusement pas indispensable aux quelques scènes restant à tourner. La dernière image est enregistrée le 2septembre1941[2]. Jean Grémillon, qui a pu récupérer les bobines dispersées lors de la débâcle (à Marseille, Pau et Billancourt[3]), a déjà entrepris le montage[2].Le film sort en salle le 27novembre1941[2].
Autour du film
Le film Remorques rend hommage aux capitaines de remorqueurs, particulièrement ancrés dans la vie brestoise depuis le commandant Louis Malbert[1] qui fut, avec le remorqueur Iroise, le précurseur du sauvetage et de l'assistance en haute-mer[4]. Les exploits du remorqueur Iroise et de son équipage inspirèrent Roger Vercel pour son roman Remorques[4]. La tradition brestoise de sauvetage et d'assistance en mer est actuellement perpétuée par le remorqueur Abeille Bourbon.
Le sujet traite d'une question qui est récurrente chez Prévert : comment parvenir à faire durer l’amour fou ? À la suite de ce film, Prévert a dit : « Grémillon faisait des films tragiques, mais lui, il était très drôle. Il aimait vraiment le cinéma. C'était un des rares à avoir du style. Après Remorques, je me suis fâché : il avait mis de la musique religieuse à la fin. Je ne voulais plus travailler avec lui. Et puis on a tout de même fait ensemble Lumière d’été »[5].
Selon, Gilbert Le Traon, directeur de la Cinémathèque de Bretagne : « Le film met en valeur la rade et ce caractère maritime brestois. Le personnage de Gabin a les traits, le tempérament du Breton, taciturne, fermé »[1]. Gilbert Le Traon a également dit : « Le compositeur, Roland-Manuel, qui a signé la musique du film, y a mixé le son de la sirène du remorqueur, qui hurle comme une bête gigantesque. Il y a, pour moi, un rappel évident à la mythologie et à la tragédie grecques avec, en toile de fond, un homme seul face à son destin »[1].
Une scène du film, devenue culte, montre Jean Gabin descendant les escaliers du cours Dajot à Brest, seul dans la nuit, dans le vent et sous la pluie. Une scène qu'il a d'ailleurs fallu recommencer une dizaine de fois, en raison de conditions météorologiques très peu coopératives en ce jour de juillet1939[1]. La pluie provenait en effet de canons à eau des pompiers et c'est un avion à hélices de l'Aéro-club de Guipavas, amputé de ses ailes, qui pallia ce soir-là l'absence de vent[1].
Bande sonore du film: Jean Grémillon, qui était un musicien talentueux, a parfois composé lui-même les musiques de ses films et était très attentif à l'ambiance sonore . Dans Remorques, la séquence de l'appareillage du Cyclone en pleine tempête est accompagnée d'une musique obsédante et syncopée dans laquelle viennent se mêler le bruit des paquets de mer et les chocs métalliques de la machine du remorqueur. C'est une expérience formelle qui rappelle un peu les tentatives des futuristes ou d'Arthur Honnegger (Pacific 231, qui tente de combiner une symphonie avec le bruit d'une locomotive)...on peut y voir une sorte de "sampling" avant la lettre.
Citation
Allocution du Docteur Maulette pour les noces de Poubennec : « Un mariage de marin, ce n'est pas un mariage comme les autres, car, comme l'a dit le poète, chaque marin a deux femmes, la sienne et puis la mer, mais, mesdames, ne soyez pas jalouses, la mer n'est pas méchante, même quand elle est mauvaise, et tant qu'ils sont avec elle, vos maris vous restent fidèles »[3].
Claire Rousset (Sabine Azéma) rend visite à son ex-mari Pierre (Jacques Nolot) qui vit dans un petit hameau de la région lyonnaise. Depuis quelque temps, la santé de Pierre ainsi que celle des autres habitants du village s'est brutalement dégradée au point d'en devenir inquiétante. Dans la nuit, un gigantesque incendie ravage la maison de Pierre ainsi que tout le village. Claire réussi malgré tout à sortir de la maison. Mais au moment de rejoindre sa voiture pour s'enfuir, elle aperçoit d'étranges individus équipés de combinaisons intégrales et armés de lances-flammes mettre sauvagement le feu au village.
Elle est repérée par les hommes, mais arrive à s'échapper in extrémis. Elle sera la seule survivante du drame. Alors que la Police fait traîner l'enquête, et elle-même très affectée par cet événement, elle décide, de manière téméraire, de mener sa propre enquête au péril de sa vie. Sur la route de son périple, elle rencontre Jeff (Richard Anconina), l'employé d'une société, le CRES, visiblement mêlée à l'incendie. Il décide de l'aider.
En 1985, le hameau de Celles, sur le lac du Salagou sert de cadre pour le tournage du film.C'est de ce tournage que date « l'effet incendie », visible sur les murs des maisons du village : dans le film, les autorités mettent sournoisement le feu au village afin d'effacer toutes traces de l'accident polluant.Les maisons ont donc été maquillées pour les besoins du scénario.
