Le Trou

Four prisoners in a Paris cell are digging an escape tunnel. A fifth man is moved in, and he has to be told. The film shows the escape as work rather than adventure: the sequence of breaking through concrete runs almost four uninterrupted minutes with no music. All the tension comes from trust, because the tunnel only works if all five stay silent. It is Jacques Becker's last film; he died shortly after shooting. It follows a real escape attempt, and one of the men who took part plays himself. Who it's for: those who like patient, realistic prison films. Who it's not for: viewers who want tension carried by music and pace; the film uses neither.