Louis Malle worked solely in German cinema.
Louis Marie Malle ( [ mal ] ; 30 October 1932 -- 23 November 1995 ) was a French film director , screenwriter , and producer . His film Le Monde du silence won the Palme d'Or in 1956 and the Academy Award for Best Documentary in 1957 , although he was not credited at the ceremony with the award instead being presented to the film 's co-director Jacques Cousteau . Malle worked in both French cinema and Hollywood , and he produced both French and English language films . His most famous films include the crime film Ascenseur pour l'échafaud ( 1958 ) , the World War II drama Lacombe , Lucien ( 1974 ) , the romantic crime film Atlantic City ( 1980 ) , the comedy-drama My Dinner with Andre ( 1981 ) , and the autobiographical film Au revoir les enfants ( 1987 ) . The Fire Within ( Le feu follet [ lə fø fɔlɛ ] , meaning `` The Manic Fire '' or `` Will-o ' - the-Wisp '' ) is a 1963 French drama film directed by Louis Malle .