The Killing

Film noir in all its splendor, with a very dynamic rhythm, far from '2001, a space odyssey': an audacious burglary seems perfectly orchestrated and prepared with a surgical precision, until a minor glitch transforms a 'Symphonie fantastique' in a 'Descente d'Orphée aux enfers'.

Stanley Kubrick co-wrote and directed this adaptation of Lionel White's book "Clean Break" (a better title!) about a racetrack robbery gone horribly wrong. Film-noir is alternately exciting and heavy-hearted, with scenes that tend to plod and performances which aren't terribly magnetic. Sterling Hayden excels as always, and Elisha Cook and Vince Edwards do well in character parts, but the other roles are disappointingly filled and the production is on the cheap side. Although Kubrick's film garnered sterling notices in its time, it hasn't aged well and is worth-seeing today only as a curio. **1/2 from ****

There's little to fault in Stanley Kubrick's classic robbery tale. The acting is first-rate with Marie Windsor, as Mrs. Peaty, a sarcastic stand-out. The story just pops off the screen - and at less than 90 minutes, there's literally no filler. I love the winding time line ("earlier that day" etc.), which has been liberally utilized by Quentin Tarantino (Jackie Brown, Pulp Fiction, Reservoir Dogs). This film was made right before Kubrick's WWI marvel, Paths of Glory, and his genius is apparent in both. No wasted words or actions. Love that last line!