9. The Killing (1956)
Kubrick wasn't even thirty when this film was released. It was his first true feature film and it follows the meticulously planned robbery of a racetrack. The Killing is an enduring film, regarded as one of the all-time great film-noirs and comes with a story where Kubrick had laid out a very detailed track for a camera shot. The cinematographer, the much-respected Lucian Ballard, disliked the track and changed it before a young Kubrick approached him and said to him in a soft, calm voice: "put the camera where I asked you with the lens I asked for or get off the set and don't come back". There was never a disagreement between the two again. The film was the first produced by Harris-Kubrick Pictures, a company set up by Kubrick and producer-friend James Harris. It stars Sterling Hayden alongside the wonderful Coleen Gray and Vince Edwards. The box-office killing that was expected didn't happen but what was more important that did happen was the reception from critics and viewers which was a primarily positive response. The film has gone on to influence numerous others, including Quentin Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs.