ELEVATOR TO THE GALLOWS

Maurice Ronet

ELEVATOR TO THE GALLOWS (aka Ascenseur pour l'echafaud/1958). Director: Louis Malle. France. 

Julien Tavernier (Maurice Ronet of The Champagne Murders) is sleeping with the boss's wife, Florence (Jeanne Moreau of Jules and Jim), who urges him to kill her husband. After the murder, Julien goes back into the office to dispose of some incriminating evidence and gets trapped in the elevator when the power is turned off. Meanwhile young Louis (Georges Poujouly), boyfriend of flower seller Veronique (Yori Bertin) takes off in Julien's car for a joy ride and takes a mildly protesting Veronique with him. On the road they encounter a German couple who befriend them, but when there's a homicide Julien becomes subject of a manhunt despite the fact he's still stuck in an elevator. Which crime will Julien wind up being accused of?

Jeanne Moreau

Elevator to the Gallows is an interesting if minor crime film and the first to be directed by Louis Malle. Although the movie has some interesting twists and situations and a very satisfying ending where no one gets off with anything, it also has one-dimensional characters and Malle (admittedly a very different type of director from, say, Alfred Hitchcock) does virtually nothing to maximize the suspense -- just because people are speaking French doesn't make this a profound drama. The performances are generally good across the board. One could argue that Ronet plays it a little too cool considering his situation but it can also be argued that he is an ex-soldier who keeps his head no matter what.

Georges Poujouly

Georges Poujouly makes an impression as the ever-sullen young baby-faced tough who steals Julien's car. He was a child actor who graduated to adult roles and amassed forty-four credits in France. There are a scattering of good character performances throughout the film as well. Miles Davis contributed a moody jazz score that works fairly well for the movie. An interesting aspect of the film is that the two lovers are never together throughout the entire movie, only seen talking to each other on the telephone at the opening.

Verdict: Interesting film that could have been much more memorable if it had had a better script and taut direction. **1/2. 

ON THE LOOSE

Joan Evans

ON THE LOOSE (1951). Director: Charles Lederer.

Jill Bradley (Joan Evans) is a small-town 16-year-old girl who has distracted parents (Lynn Bari and Melvyn Douglas) and a seemingly devoted boyfriend named Larry (Robert Arthur of Naked Youth). When Larry brings Jill to his house when his parents are gone, he passes out on the sofa and is found hungover the next morning. Larry is forced to break up with the "fast" Jill, who dates lots of guys to get over her heartbreak and winds up with a "reputation," nearly leading to tragedy. On the Loose is a time capsule of a movie, looking back at 1950's attitudes towards dating and premarital sex, as well as at timeless troubled marriages, and on that level is quite effective. Joan Evans [Roseanna McCoy] gives a very good performance as the confused and unhappy young woman, and the rest of the cast are also on target, with Melvyn Douglas [Hud] delivering some fine moments when he does his best to bond with his daughter in the second half of the film. Hugh O'Brian makes an impression as a kind-hearted doctor, and Tristram Coffin plays a judge, who shows up after some melodramatic developments in a bar. The ending is unrealistically happy but nevertheless touching.

Verdict: Teen angst well-played. ***. 

JEALOUSY

Nils Asther and Jane Randolph

JEALOUSY (1945). Director: Gustav Machaty.

Peter Urban (Nils Asther of Storm at Daybreak) was a successful author before he fled Europe, but in the U.S. he has become a bitter, alcoholic and suicidal failure. His wife, Janet (Jane Randolph of The Mysterious Mr. M) drives a cab to make ends meet. One afternoon she meets a kindly doctor, David Brent (John Loder), and the two fall in love. Although she feigns happiness over this development, Brent's assistant, Monica (Karen Morley of The Mask of Fu Manchu), is secretly heartbroken. Then someone gets shot in the head ... Jealousy is an interesting romantic melodrama with some poetic touches that just misses being really special. The screenplay could have used more development (and more running time) and the two leads -- Randolph and Loder -- are barely adequate as the lovers. Asther is more effective as Peter, and the best performances come from Morley as the complicated Monica and Hugo Haas (who directed quite a few cheap thrillers) as Peter's amiable friend, a minor actor named Hugo Kral. There's a lovely scene when Monica first learns that David is in love with someone else, and she goes into the bedroom to change, making happy talk for his sake, but we see in the mirror a true reflection of her inner feelings. Another interesting moment occurs when Monica, who has written a medical tome, inscribes it lovingly to her "friend," Janet, as Janet and David talk of their plans in the next room. Director Machaty, who was responsible for Hedy Lamarr's Ecstasy, does his best to add some stylish camera angles and the like to the low-budget production. The story was by Dalton Trumbo. Machaty also directed Within the Law, but much of his directorial work in the U.S. went uncredited.

Verdict: Interesting entry from Republic pictures. ***.