Director Stanley Kubrick's first masterpiece arrived in 1956, that certain "masterpiece" is evidently the seminal and always influential crime-doesn't-pay flick, The Killing. It revealed Kubrick as a director of mass potential and distinct talent, wholly displaying his ability to make polished pictures on a minimal budget. Yet more than anything, it was not purely a trial-run of amateurish talent as with his previous noir, Killer's Kiss. Instead it was something which would advance Kubrick's career from underground status to that of an emerging auteur. Numerous directors, such as Quentin Tarantino and Michael Mann, have been principally influenced by this early classic and even today, it ranks highly among the greatest crime films in cinema history.
It might seem cliché in this day and age, but the story of an ex-con returning to robbery for one last, meticulously premeditated heist was groundbreaking for its time. More than anything else, its method of storytelling was the most revolutionary element of all, with the use of retrospective, documentary narration pestering the ongoing story. Such an approach allowed the director to condense the narrative to a stringent, eighty-five minutes, without limiting the restless gist. Amusingly, such narration was allegedly incorporated due to studio insistence and Kubrick -never the man to concede to studio intrusion- used the narration as a means perplexing the viewer with mislead information. This lends the film its innovative, non-linear format and results in a more rewarding outing in viewer involvement.
Crammed with gorgeous cinematography, dizzying camera positioning and chilling lighting effects it is impossible for it not to be considered anything but unadulterated noir. The irreplaceable black and white film could not have been more appropriate for illuminating the character's sustained facial expressions and nervous idiosyncrasies. Arguably, this is the first of Kubrick's pictures where the "Kubrickian technique" adjective can be applied and although it does not feature a fully-fledged tracking-shot it certainly details the characteristics first experimented formerly in Killer's Kiss. Ever serious about his work, the director did not keep to the traditional film-making traits of the period, but throughout his career persistently expanded the facets which should make an individual's work instantly recognisable.
There is obvious weight placed on the characters who are dominant and those who are not, but even the most cunning of characters meet their match. The typical, Kubrickian formality was introduced here; showing little respect for those who meddle in crime and a disgust at humanity's gluttony. The majority of characters are double-sided, emotionless fiends who are merely using the other for financial gain. Typically, for a work of this genre, there is no compassion, solely a moral and an acidic manifestation of retribution. Dramatic irony will leave the viewer clinging and distantly hesitant over what they might encounter next, but with Kubrick no character is ever in safe hands. The Killing has a simple message of crime doesn't pay, but it says so without resorting to linear boredom.
It might seem cliché in this day and age, but the story of an ex-con returning to robbery for one last, meticulously premeditated heist was groundbreaking for its time. More than anything else, its method of storytelling was the most revolutionary element of all, with the use of retrospective, documentary narration pestering the ongoing story. Such an approach allowed the director to condense the narrative to a stringent, eighty-five minutes, without limiting the restless gist. Amusingly, such narration was allegedly incorporated due to studio insistence and Kubrick -never the man to concede to studio intrusion- used the narration as a means perplexing the viewer with mislead information. This lends the film its innovative, non-linear format and results in a more rewarding outing in viewer involvement.
Crammed with gorgeous cinematography, dizzying camera positioning and chilling lighting effects it is impossible for it not to be considered anything but unadulterated noir. The irreplaceable black and white film could not have been more appropriate for illuminating the character's sustained facial expressions and nervous idiosyncrasies. Arguably, this is the first of Kubrick's pictures where the "Kubrickian technique" adjective can be applied and although it does not feature a fully-fledged tracking-shot it certainly details the characteristics first experimented formerly in Killer's Kiss. Ever serious about his work, the director did not keep to the traditional film-making traits of the period, but throughout his career persistently expanded the facets which should make an individual's work instantly recognisable.
There is obvious weight placed on the characters who are dominant and those who are not, but even the most cunning of characters meet their match. The typical, Kubrickian formality was introduced here; showing little respect for those who meddle in crime and a disgust at humanity's gluttony. The majority of characters are double-sided, emotionless fiends who are merely using the other for financial gain. Typically, for a work of this genre, there is no compassion, solely a moral and an acidic manifestation of retribution. Dramatic irony will leave the viewer clinging and distantly hesitant over what they might encounter next, but with Kubrick no character is ever in safe hands. The Killing has a simple message of crime doesn't pay, but it says so without resorting to linear boredom.