Though he had directed movies before, The Killing is the first movie in his canon that feels like it was made by the same Stanley Kubrick that helmed classics such as Lolita, A Clockwork Orange, Full Metal Jacket and so forth. A slick and relatively simple crime flick that begs to be watched over and over again, The Killing feels like a natural predecessor of Reservoir Dogs in the way that it hones in on a botched crime and its aftermath, shifting perceptions as it goes. The Killing feels constructed in a way that Kubrick's later movies would, too; that sense of careful perfectionism that would go on to define the director's works. Shot beautifully in black and white and featuring great, gritty (and very "macho") performances from all its actors, who knew that a racetrack robbery flick made on such a low-budget could make for such gripping entertainment? Not to mention the ending, which is both funny and tragic in equal measure.
Sam Hill is an ardent cinephile and has been writing about film professionally since 2008. He harbours a particular fondness for western and sci-fi movies.
