Review of The Cincinnati Kid (1965) by Mark S — 24 Feb 2010

Perhaps the most perfectly framed movie of the 1960s. Every frame in this movie is exquisite. Take the opening poker game. The camera's top-down POV puts the table in dead center. In the upper right corner, a fixture with a lit bulb. Hands, money, cards, used matches, a filled ashtray, some lint, and one full drinking glass. Sure, lots of stuff is in the frame, but that's not what makes it so good. It's the placements, where you can clearly see everything, yet it all looks naturally.

After winning and being accused of cheating, the Kid is attacked, and in the ensuing chase, he goes into a train yard. With a new car rotating to be coupled, he emerges in just to the left of the upper center, runs down to the forefront, jumps up on the rotating engine, crosses and jumps down. The henchman appear just off to the right of the upper center, while in the far right, a worker is strolling by. The train is still rotating. The warehouse envelopes the back. Some construction tools and wires, etc., line the edges. The action takes place all in one shot.

Even the more minor things, like two people talking, effectively frames itself and uses the deadspace to properly frame the ones talking.

Steve McQueen as the title character is really good. Not as brash or gung-ho as some of his other characters, this one is a bit more meandering, more introverted. He plays to the hilt, and makes the dialogue and lingo sound as naturally as flipping a coin. The nice romance doesn't soften the Kid's image, in fact, it makes him a bit more a bastard.

Ann-Margret is rather sexy in her small role. Edward G. Robinson as his nemesis is excellent, and the manicured, immaculate appearance of his Lancey vs. the nice, but casual, middle class of the Kid is very interesting.

Parts are a bit predictable, but the ending is rather amazing, and very gripping, although, like most poker-based movies, it does end in a damn near impossible hand, which is a bit of a letdown.