The Melbourne Cinémathèque & ACMI present
Le Trou
When
Wed 6 Sep 2023
Shot in Jean-Pierre Melville’s studio, Becker’s last film is a claustrophobic and meticulously detailed portrait of five men who attempt to tunnel out of prison. Adapted by José Giovanni (Le deuxième soufflé) from his own novel, this is a milestone in the history of films on the subject of incarceration. A departure in style for its director, its use of non-actors – including one of the prisoners ostensibly playing 'himself' – rigorously stylised camerawork and 'real' sounds produce a remarkably authentic and Bressonian sense of locale. Evocatively shot by Ghislain Cloquet, this is one of the great final works of the cinema.
Also screening on Wed 6 September
Program
Gangsters, Guns and Gauloises: French crime cinema, 1945–60
Quai des Orfèvres (1947) – Wed 30 Aug, 7pm
Razzia Sur la Chnouf (1955) – Wed 30 Aug, 9.05pm
Classes Tous Risques (1960) – Wed 6 Sep, 7pm
Le Trou (1960) – Wed 6 Sep, 8.55pm
Rififi (1955) – Wed 13 Sep, 7pm
Panique (1946) – Wed 13 Sep, 9.10pm
About the program
Although film noir is primarily associated with American cinema of the 1940s and 1950s, France played a key role in its development, both in its appreciation (the term was coined by French critic Nino Frank in 1946) and continuation of the genre. It is perhaps fitting that Rififi (1955), considered by many to be the ultimate French noir, was directed by Jules Dassin, an American exiled in Paris...
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About Melbourne Cinémathèque
Australia's longest-running film society, Melbourne Cinémathèque screens significant works of international cinema in the medium they were created, the way they would have originally screened.
Melbourne Cinémathèque is self-administered, volunteer-run, not-for-profit and membership-driven.
