#575: KUBRICK, Stanley: The Killing (1956)

KUBRICK, Stanley (United States)

The Killing [1956]

Spine #575
Blu-ray

Stanley Kubrick's account of an ambitious racetrack robbery is one of Hollywood's tautest, twistiest noirs. Aided by a radically time-shuffling narrative, razor-sharp dialogue from pulp novelist Jim Thompson, and a phenomenal cast of character actors, including Sterling Hayden, Coleen Gray, Timothy Carey, Elisha Cook Jr., and Marie Windsor, The Killing is both a jaunty thriller and a cold-blooded punch to the gut. And with its precise tracking shots and gratifying sense of irony, it's Kubrick to the core.

84 minutes
Black & White

Monaural

1:66:1 aspect ratio

Criterion Release 2011

Director/Writers

Based on the novel Clean Break by Lionel White.

Screenplay by Stanley Kubrick.

Dialogue by Jim Thompson.

Kubrick was 28 when he directed The Killing.

Other Kubrick films in the Collection:

#538: Paths Of Glory (1957)
#105: Sparticus (1960)
#821: Dr. Strangelove, Or: How I Stopped Worrying And Learned To Love The Bomb (1964)
#897: Barry Lyndon (1975)

The Film

Film Rating (0-60):

60

The Extras

The Booklet

Twenty-four page booklet featuring an essay by film historian Haden Guest and a reprinted interview with actress Windsor.

Commentary

None.

Excerpted interviews

With actor Hayden from the French television series Cinéma cinémas.

Video interview

With poet and author Robert Polito about writer Thompson.

Restored

High-definition digital transfer of Kubrick’s 1955 noir feature Killer’s Kiss.

Video appreciation

Of Killer’s Kiss featuring film critic Geoffrey O’Brien.

Trailers

Extras Rating (0-40):

39

60 + 39 =

99

By Director
By Spine #