After having Produced and Directed two short films, Stanley Kubrick met Producer James B. Harris while playing Chess at Washington Square. The 2 formed a friendship - and then a partnership, the Harris-Kubrick Pictures Corporation. They bought the rights to Lionel White's novel CLEAN BREAK and Kubrick set out to make his first Major Motion Picture which would turn out to be THE KILLING.
The plot of this film is simple enough. A group of disparate, desperate people come together to heist $2 million from a racetrack. The film shows the leader of the group, played by Sterling Hayden, recruiting the others for the task, the steps leading up to the job and then the heist itself. What sets it apart is how Kubrick decides to tell the story of the robbery - he shows the events via the point of view of each character...and in a non-linear fashion...which confused audiences at the time, but which works very, very well to heighten the tension of this film during the heist.
Sterling Hayden (Capt. McCluskey in THE GODFATHER) is the best known actor in this group of retrobates and anchors the film with a gravitas and morally corrupt center that this film (and this gang needs). He is unwavering in his focus/devotion to "the job" and only - in the end - do we see this veneer crack.
The ragtag band of would-be thieves is a veritable "who's who" of "that guy" character actors like Elisha Cook, Jr. (The MALTESE FALCON), Jay C. Flippen (WINCHESTER '73), Joe Sawyer (THE PETRIFIED FOREST) and Vince Edwards (who was seen in this film and would then be, famously, cast as BEN CASEY on TV). Probably the most effective of these low-lifes is Marie Windsor (CAT-WOMEN ON THE MOON) as the femme fatale of the piece.
2 interesting pieces of casting is that Joe Turkel shows up in the small role of "Tiny". He would appear in a later Kubrick film, THE SHINING as the bartender and Comedian Rodney Dangerfield (CADDYSHACK) makes his first appearance on screen as an extra at the racetrack. (Look for him near the door where Sterling Hayden is about to slip into while a fight distracts the guards).
Kubrick's Cinematic tastes are beginning to show in this film, as the non-linear format of the heist would become inspiration to such filmmakers as Quentin Tarantino (RESERVOIR DOGS) and Kirk Douglas was so impressed with Kubrick's work in this film that he specifically asked for Kubrick to direct his next film, PATHS OF GLORY.
Without a proper release across the U. S., The Killing performed poorly at the box office. In spite of a last-minute promotion as the "B" picture on a double-bill with BANDIDO!, it failed to turn a profit. But it garnered critical acclaim, landing on several critics' top-ten lists for 1956. And is consistently ranked as one of the Top 25 Film Noir movies of all time.
A gritty film noir with a tense climax, THE KILLING is worth checking out not only as the first, true Kubrick film, but as a really entertaining time at the movies.
THE KILLING can be streamed for free if you have an Amazon Prime account.
Letter Grade: A-
8 Stars (out of 10) and you can take that to the Bank(ofMarquis)
The plot of this film is simple enough. A group of disparate, desperate people come together to heist $2 million from a racetrack. The film shows the leader of the group, played by Sterling Hayden, recruiting the others for the task, the steps leading up to the job and then the heist itself. What sets it apart is how Kubrick decides to tell the story of the robbery - he shows the events via the point of view of each character...and in a non-linear fashion...which confused audiences at the time, but which works very, very well to heighten the tension of this film during the heist.
Sterling Hayden (Capt. McCluskey in THE GODFATHER) is the best known actor in this group of retrobates and anchors the film with a gravitas and morally corrupt center that this film (and this gang needs). He is unwavering in his focus/devotion to "the job" and only - in the end - do we see this veneer crack.
The ragtag band of would-be thieves is a veritable "who's who" of "that guy" character actors like Elisha Cook, Jr. (The MALTESE FALCON), Jay C. Flippen (WINCHESTER '73), Joe Sawyer (THE PETRIFIED FOREST) and Vince Edwards (who was seen in this film and would then be, famously, cast as BEN CASEY on TV). Probably the most effective of these low-lifes is Marie Windsor (CAT-WOMEN ON THE MOON) as the femme fatale of the piece.
2 interesting pieces of casting is that Joe Turkel shows up in the small role of "Tiny". He would appear in a later Kubrick film, THE SHINING as the bartender and Comedian Rodney Dangerfield (CADDYSHACK) makes his first appearance on screen as an extra at the racetrack. (Look for him near the door where Sterling Hayden is about to slip into while a fight distracts the guards).
Kubrick's Cinematic tastes are beginning to show in this film, as the non-linear format of the heist would become inspiration to such filmmakers as Quentin Tarantino (RESERVOIR DOGS) and Kirk Douglas was so impressed with Kubrick's work in this film that he specifically asked for Kubrick to direct his next film, PATHS OF GLORY.
Without a proper release across the U. S., The Killing performed poorly at the box office. In spite of a last-minute promotion as the "B" picture on a double-bill with BANDIDO!, it failed to turn a profit. But it garnered critical acclaim, landing on several critics' top-ten lists for 1956. And is consistently ranked as one of the Top 25 Film Noir movies of all time.
A gritty film noir with a tense climax, THE KILLING is worth checking out not only as the first, true Kubrick film, but as a really entertaining time at the movies.
THE KILLING can be streamed for free if you have an Amazon Prime account.
Letter Grade: A-
8 Stars (out of 10) and you can take that to the Bank(ofMarquis)