Director Louis Malle made his feature debut in 1958 at age 24 with Elevator to the Gallows (The Criterion Collection; Movie •••½, Picture/Sound •••½, Extras •••½), a coolly controlled tale of a murder plot gone awry.
The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada (Sony; Movie ••••, Picture/Sound ••••, Extras •••) didn't win any major American awards, but for many who saw the directorial debut of actor Tommy Lee Jones, this beautiful yet unsentimental take on the modern Western was the film to beat in 2005.
