Sept. 27, 2002 - 10:44 pm
man, it's hard to pull yourself away from video games right after you buy a new system. anyway i finally got back and watched a movie again. this time i decided to go with one of the few Stanley Kubrick films i still had left to see. this one is a crime story told in an unusual manner. basically the timing of it is meant to be confusing. you'll see one thing happen in the heist and then the story will move backwards like 3 hours, and then it'll move up a couple of hours again. interesting technique. but then Stanley Kubrick was never called unoriginal.
aside from the strange timing of the film and its reluctance to move in a linear fashion, the big plot element is a racetrack heist. Sterling Hayden heads a group of hired men who all have small parts to play in the one big day at the track. the plan is to get away with 2 million. the whole first hour of the film is really buildup to the heist, but it gives you a lot of great complex character development for a few of the key players. i think if you liked Ocean's Eleven (2001), you'll probably enjoy The Killing. it gives you a lot of the same feelings and the same tension is still there, only without the humor aspect.
most of the acting and direction in this film is wonderful. the only person i didn't like was the actress playing the plotting, two-timing wife. she seemed like she was not very well developed as an actress. maybe just not seasoned enough i guess. everyone else was perfect.
i liked a lot of the cinematography in this. i like how Kubrick wasn't afraid to get shots with items unnecessary to the action of the story in the way of the shot. like he's tracking horizontally from one room to another to follow a moving actor, and a lamp will pass through the shot, then a table, etc. it sort of reminded me of Hitchcock's work in Dial M for Murder (1954). of course Hitchcock was doing that to take advantage of 3D filmmaking. but still it's somewhat unique to see.
overall though, excellent film. very thrilling, lots of suspense, great action, and i believe this story features one of the most amazingly disappointing film events in history. i mean to say that it's wonderfully done, and it's trying to make you feel disappointed, and it does it amazingly well. see The Killing and you'll know what i mean.