Overview
A meticulously planned heist spirals into chaos as greed and betrayal take center stage.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Mild
- tense
- fatalistic
- sardonic
- classic noir night
- crime movie marathon
What critics said
Critics broadly praised the film's taut heist construction, controlled direction, distinctive nonlinear presentation, and strong ensemble performances despite some confusion and thinness in the plot.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Johnny Clay's plan depends on seven men performing separate tasks while remaining compartmentalized from one another.
The racetrack robbery is rendered through restrained performances, procedural detail, and occasional documentary-style passages.
George reveals the heist to Sherry, who passes its broad outline to Val Cannon while pursuing her own interests.
The robbery requires the team's separate actions to occur in a meticulously synchronized sequence at Lansdowne Racetrack.
Films like The Killing, and why
The Asphalt Jungle
shared film noir atmosphere, meticulously planned robbery, moral corruption, and fatalistic crime plotting
Rififi
shared heist structure, intersecting criminal perspectives, procedural tension, and betrayal within a criminal scheme
The Killing of a Chinese Bookie
shared black-and-white noir style, criminal underworld focus, escalating distrust, and bleak irony
The Getaway
shared tightly organized robbery, doomed criminals, suspenseful procedural construction, and shifting loyalties
Movie Details
- Director
- Stanley Kubrick
- Release Date
- 1956-06-06
- Runtime
- 85 min
- Rating
- 7.6 / 10 (1771)
Cast
- Sterling Hayden
- Coleen Gray
- Vince Edwards
- Jay C. Flippen
- Ted de Corsia
- Marie Windsor
- Elisha Cook Jr.
- Joe Sawyer
- James Edwards
- Timothy Carey
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Amazon Prime Video, YouTube TV, MUBI, MUBI Amazon Channel, Amazon Prime Video with Ads
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is The Killing about?
- A recently paroled mastermind orchestrates a racetrack robbery whose precision is steadily eroded by greed, secrecy, and marital betrayal.
- What is The Killing like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of The Killing as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is The Killing violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in The Killing as mild.
- What did critics think of The Killing?
- Critics broadly praised the film's taut heist construction, controlled direction, distinctive nonlinear presentation, and strong ensemble performances despite some confusion and thinness in the plot.
- Which films are like The Killing?
- Films with a similar feel include The Asphalt Jungle, Rififi, The Killing of a Chinese Bookie, and The Getaway.
- How long is The Killing?
- The Killing runs 85 minutes.
- Where can I watch The Killing?
- In United States, The Killing streams on Amazon Prime Video, YouTube TV, MUBI, MUBI Amazon Channel, Amazon Prime Video with Ads.
