Heads Up: The Killing

What better way to get things started than with a Heads Up about a Stanley Kubrick film that is too often overlooked.  The Killing, which came out in 1956, is one of Kubrick's earliest films, and for someone trying to make films that is sort depressing, because it is proof positive that Kubrick produced some of the highest quality films consistently for four decades.  The Killing is a great movie.
It is a heist movie, about a group of men attempting to knock off a horse racing track and make off with the winnings.  The first chunk of the film is devoted to establishing the characters, and preparing for the heist itself.  The characters are, for the most part, pretty interesting, and well presented by the actors.  A few characters stand out more than others; for me it was especially Kola Kwariani a Chess playing Russian wrestler who plays a Chess playing Russian wrestler in the film, and Timothy Carey who superbly plays the eccentric Nikki Arane, who is hired as a sharp shooter who were the stand outs.  Largely the cast is pretty standard pulp fare, but that's a good thing in this case.
As with every Kubrick film, The Killing is beautifully shot.  Composition is immaculate, and incredible throughout, and the lighting is truly dynamic at moments, making for some really stunning shots.  The heist itself is an interesting one to follow, and I found the film thoroughly engaging from start to finish.  As the heist is taking place we get to see each character play their part, and we get to watch the same event several times from different characters points of view.  I am always a fan of this idea, and it is cool to see such an early and effective use of the concept.
This isn't necessarily a film of incredible eternal depth, but as previously mentioned: it's pulp.  I take that as a good thing, but maybe not everyone does.  The music, too, is very by the books pulp filmy for this time period.  I don't remember being overly disappointed by the music, but I don't remember being very interested by it either.  It is probably one of the more lack-luster elements.  There is also a narrator who pops up here and there to tell us what time it is and what's going on.  I've never really liked bodiless narrators in most cases, and for the most part in this film it is used in a pretty conventional manner, which is kind of boring.  It works though, and I guess things needed to used first before they became convention, and eventually cliche.  This film clearly used it in a time long before it became cliche, but it was certainly already a boring convention.
I have seen the film a couple times now, and I really, really like it.  It's fun to watch if only to watch Kubrick develop his style as a young auteur.  If you don't care who Stanley Kubrick is, shame on you, but still, if you like a good heist movie, this is a damn good one.  It's not too long, and as far as I know it's on instant watch.  So go look it up.  The Killing is a fun, interesting and beautifully crafted piece of pulp film making.
I'd say it deserves somewhere between 4 and 4 1/2 stars out of 5.