The Killing (1956)

Almost ruined by the final 5 minutes, 5 June 2005

Kubrick's The Killing is very nearly a perfect movie. The story centers around the daylight robbery of $2 million from a racetrack. A varied group of five men are brought together to plan and execute the hold-up. Kubrick's decision to tell the story in a non-linear fashion was a good one. The viewers attention is focused on each part of the hold-up and how each part relates to the whole. The detail is amazing. Through different eyes and ears, we see and hear the 7th race begin at least four different times.

The heist itself is a thing of beauty. Every part fits perfectly into place. There are very few lucky coincidences (which always angers me in a heist movie) necessary for the hold-up to work. The plan goes like clockwork. My favorite part had to be the bar fight scene between wrestler Kola Kwarini and fifteen police officers. It might seem like a silly thing, but it was absolutely necessary to divert the attention of track security.

The acting is great. Sterling Hayden is outstanding as the schedule obsessed head of the group. Elisha Cook plays Elisha Cook. If you're a fan of Cook from other films, you'll like him here. Marie Windsor is especially conniving as the cheating wife who is out for herself. And I always enjoy seeing Jay C. Flippin.

I started by saying that The Killing is nearly a perfect movie. But it's not perfect. I was ready to rate The Killing a 9/10 until the final five minutes. The ending is a cliché ridden disaster. Surely Kubrick could have come up with something better than having a poodle running onto the runway. It's hard to believe that a simple moment like that almost ruined the movie for me.

8/10