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You have my sympathies, then. You have not yet learned that in this life you have to be like everyone else - the perfect mediocrity; no better, no worse. Individuality's a monster and it must be strangled in it's cradle to make our friends feel confident. You know, I've often thought that the gangster and the artist are the same in the eyes of the masses. They are admired and hero-worshipped, but there is always present underlying wish to see them destroyed at the peak of their glory.

Previous Stanley Kubrick review:

• A Clockwork Orange

# Review

Johnny Clay (Sterling Hayden), freshly out of prison, assembles a five-man team to stage a racetrack robbery. The team consists of a corrupt cop (Ted de Corsia), a betting window teller (Elisha Cook Jr.), a racetrack bartender (Jay C. Flippen), a wrestler (Kola Kwariani), and a sharpshooter (Timothy Carey).

I’ve only seen one other Kubrick film, A Clockwork Orange, and that film was one of the most original films I’ve ever seen. The Killing, unfortunately was not nearly as original, nor was it as enthralling. That’s not to say that The Killing is a bad film; what Kubrick accomplishes with limited budgets is magical. The film feels gripping with an unpredictable non-linear plot and snappy dialogue; it is clear that many later directors, such as Tarantino, drew great inspiration from this film. The characters feel unique with their own backstories; I especially enjoyed Marie Windsor’s conniving and manipulative Sherry. Despite the positives, I would be remiss to place this film one the same level as A Clockwork Orange.

# Conclusion

Not Kubrick's greatest work, but still enjoyable.

# Overall rating: 7.4

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