Claude Gaspard is the newest inmate to the prison and gets befriended with other four prisoners in the cell. Firstly he used to live in other block, then he was transferred. He was accused of attempted first degree murder, charged by his wife. So, the total five prisoners try hard their best to become escapists. At last, when their way of escape accomplishes, Claude Gaspard is escorted to the warden and there he's told that his wife lifted the charges against him, however the court finds it difficult to believe in the allegation made by his wife. Now he's free to go and he will make it with the other inmates except Geo. When they are ready to escape from the jail, they get caught red handed. Claude Gaspard was then transferred to a new block and you would feel sorry for him as Ronald says 'Poor Gaspard'. The hardship of their works to escape from the prison will get any spectator on nerves to the deepest. This movie will engage you utterly to the core and you will be in a state of 'nail-biting' and wondering what will happen next or will they be successful in their work?

... or does it? Claude Gaspard (Marc Michel), a young convict with handsome boyish looks is transferred to a cell with four tough-looking men serving long sentences. He's welcomed with diverging reactions; some are suspicious, others more eager to give him the benefit of the doubt. This element of trust is crucial because the four new jail-mates are planning an escape and they need to know whether they can trust the baby-faced rookie and induce him in the plan or not … in fact, I'm wondering what choice other than trusting him did they ever have? The scene echoes the previous meeting with the Warden (André Bervil) whose exchange with Gaspard is a school-case of perfect character exposition. While the inmate before Gaspard was hysterically crying his innocence, ignoring the warden's advice to give up his hunger strike, things got more civilized and cordial with Gaspard who respectfully admitted his guilt, his good manners and well-spoken attitude earned him the warden's sympathy, and to a certain extent, ours. Gaspard has a talent to win everyone's sympathy. Yet, had the four inmates known how the meeting with the warden went, they wouldn't have trusted him the way they did.That paradox is only a glimpse of the entire existentialist marvels Jacques Becker's swan song movie "Le Trou" ("The Hole") is full of, like a real-life hole from which, all the darkest remains of human souls can gush out and spill over people's actions. But we only get them at the end, because for most of its time, "The Hole" is a tunnel being dug up, a riveting prison escape movie, tackled with such a meticulous attention to detail and documentary-like realism that anyone can easily overlook the little hints that makes the ending both tragic and predictable. In fact, it's even more tragic because of its plausibility.The film, adapted from a real-life event, starts with a statement by Roland Darbant who took part to the escape attempt and plays the leader of the gang Jean Keraudy, a former resistant who escaped three times from the Nazis. And there's no doubt such a movie is false given all the detailed depictions of last-minute improvisations: the prisoners dig the tunnel with a scratch metal taken from the bed mechanisms, the loud digging sounds are covered by noises from works made outside, they also use a mirror planted on a toothbrush as a periscope, little bottles of medics snatched from the nursery room and a few sand makes perfect hourglasses, a few strings and paperwork and you can create the illusion of prisoner lying under his blanket etc.And so on, and so forth, it is so detailed, so careful, that you can see only one thing ruining the whole scheme: good old human factor. And this is an element that follows the plot so discreetly you never really suspect it; if one thing, you think of bad luck, how could anyone betray them? Keraudy was the leader, a man of honor, Manu Borelli the young thug (Phillipe Leroy) and the scene-stealing Michel Constantin as Geo Cassine were the strongest and straight-to-the-point guys, even the 'Reverend' (Raymond Meunier) put so much energy and sleepless nights in the project, that they had nothing to win from a betrayal. They served a long sentence already.Only the young and handsome Gaspard had a predisposition for betrayal hidden behind his back-story, and for some reason, we think too much of him. He was an orphan raised by his grandmother; he inherited a nice wealth but lost everything, then married a rich woman and cheated on her with under-aged sister. He's in prison for murder attempt but he claims it was an accident and his wife only tries to have her revenge. All these sordid elements lead to one characteristic: Gaspard is selfish, self-absorbed and hide his lack of moral principles, behind his good looks and manners, he knows how to dissimulate. And he's finally given a motive when the warden tells him that his wife will drop the case.When he goes back to the cell, all the prisoners are still wondering if he's to be trusted. We almost forget that the night before, he reached the streets with Mario and almost suggested to take a cab, but we were so blinded by the fact that he was the protagonist, we couldn't see him as the traitor. But he did and when all the prisoners get ready for the departure after all the painstaking efforts they put into, guards are waiting for them, we can't believe it but it did happen. Yet suddenly, everything gets clear. Of course, as they didn't have any choice but to accept Gaspard, Gaspard was also induced into betraying them, otherwise, he'd lose his chance for freedom, but "Poor Gaspard", to be stuck in the same existential hole.Of course, it's easy to overlook what kind of men his cell-mates were. But that's forgetting that "The Hole", within its minimalist format is mostly a one-set movie, where everyone is defined through what we see. They all swam in the same waters, but together, they have a sacred bond, we instinctively accept. And beyond their criminal background, there's a code of honor, what they forgot though is that Gaspard came from a different world. A left-wing director, Becker believed in classes and clashes between classes, his strike of genius was to cast unknown faces to make the film an authentic feel yet to create an awkward contrast with the casting of Marc Michel, who'd be in "Cherbourg Umbrellas", the bourgeois individualistic against the more principled working men.While the bourgeois can count on nepotism and special privileges, streetwise men can only rely on improvisation and resourcefulness. Retrospectively, we should've the project was doomed as soon as Gaspard entered the cell.

This is how a prison escape film should be done. Approached with a gentle authenticity to the point where comparisons can be made to Robert Bresson, Le Trou (French for The Hole) avoids falling into the negative clichés of prison brutality or exclusion. Instead, it drives in the opposite direction. The prison guards are relaxed and feel no need for harsh restrain unless provoked, the prison judges are lenient, the prisoners are comfortable and without uniform and our protagonist, Claude Gaspard, is warmly welcomed into a group of four prisoners. While I expected a tense thriller, this lack of initial conflict was somewhat jarring, but it was all a false sense of security. When the reality of an extended period of time spent suffocating hits, that's when the need to be free drives the film. With crisp black-and-white cinematography, it's also dealt with similar simplicity with dry basic framing, but on a level which invites the viewer among the group too along with Claude. The highlight is the film's use of sound (silence and loud noise) and real-time, holding onto long takes of actors actually pummelling their way through cement. It shows the energy, determination and intensity of their actions. Despite the use of non-actors, the performances are great, delivering tension and also comic moments that make the film endearing. There's a true sense of friendship between them, and Claude's involvement makes it apparent. One of the interesting things about the film is that there isn't a despicable character and they all have their charms that set them apart (particularly due to the great dialogue). Jacques Becker's theme is that everybody is a forgivable human being. That is, of course, until the final betrayal. It is ironic that the one man proved innocent is the man guilty of abusing their trust. And it isn't found out until the very last hair raising moments which makes up for all the close calls not hindering or altering their progress throughout the film. While there are some contrivances that can be ignored due to benefit of the doubt, such as guards ignoring the loud noise and how one of the characters effortlessly creates a master-key using his infinitely sharp nail file - the demonstration of skill and knowledge with the prisoner's resourcefulness makes up for it, such as sending post between jail cells and manufacturing a hourglass. Despite the Le Trou's flaws, it's an incredibly intense and entertaining film. I hope can excuse the flaws more on further viewings.8/10

How could anyone sit and watch a movie at the edge of their seats for the whole running time of the movie without the slightest clue as to what might happen next and flicking few beads of sweat after tense scenes? Well, i just did.This movie is by far the most thrilling movie i've ever seen. The plot is simple- four men plan to escape from a prison. How they execute their plan is what enthralled me. They are lead by Roland, an expert in forging keys, digging burrows, listen to the unheard, and is the chief planner of the escape route having through knowledge of the map of the prison. They safely conceal the burrow they dig under their room with stacks of cardboard and with every passing day they explore the unexplored routes through the uninhabited regions of the prison and all the men share the workload equally. The final frontier between emancipation and incarceration is a concrete wall that would lead them to the sewer which goes a couple of lanes past the prison. The dig an alternate route which is 10-foot long and after days of strenuous work they finally breach it. When they feel the next night is the opportune time to break-free, they are caught on time by a cordon of cops and are sent to solitary cells thanks to the information drawn from their new inmate Claude, who takes the bait laid by the Warden and blots out the clandestine plan of his new roommates.A movie that deserves the appreciation of all the movie critics and cinephiles in the world.