Review of The Killing (1956) by Jamie D — 26 Jan 2011

Maurice: Individuality's a monster and it must be strangled in it's cradle to make our friends feel confident.

Stanley Kubrick's third feature length film, and one that he himself disregarded as one of his masterpieces. A crime film at its basic, but also a test of human endeavour, and the intricacies of the criminal mind. Even in his early projects, the camera work and intensity that Kubrick brought the cinema is evident and effective. The film is as meticulously shot as the crime itself.

The use of a narrative that continually gives the time and place of the scenes, distorts the audience, and the inclusion of flashbacks is an interesting take on the genre and offers up the various roles of the characters well. Overall, this is not one of Kubrick's absolute greats, but it is an early example of the master at work, and foreshadows what the director is capable of. Here he is mastered the crime genre well, but this is just the beginning of his cinema and his legacy...