The Killers
Regie:
Robert SiodmakKamera:
Elwood BredellMusik:
Miklós RózsaBesetzung:
Burt Lancaster, Ava Gardner, Edmond O'Brien, Albert Dekker, Sam Levene, Vince Barnett, Virginia Christine, Jack Lambert, Charles D. Brown (mehr)Inhalte(1)
Eine Kleinstadt im Nirgendwo der USA. Eine Tages wird der Tankwart Swede Lunn ermordet – eine Hinrichtung wie im Gangstermilieu. Der auf den Fall angesetze Versicherungsdetektiv James Reardon versucht, den Fall zu lösen und deckt immer größere Teile einer tragischen Lebensgeschichte auf. So kommt die kriminelle Vergangenheit des simplen Ex-Boxers Lunn langsam ans Tageslicht. Auch die verführerische und zwielichtige Kitty tritt auf den Plan, für die er einst aus blinder Liebe einen Überfalll beging. Als klar wurde, dass Gangsterboss Colfax und Kitty ihn hintergangen haben, verschwindet Lunn mit der Beute. Doch jetzt hat ihn seine Vergangenheit eingeholt und das Leben gekostet. (Verleiher-Text)
(mehr)Kritiken (2)
Another excellent noir film of its time, where it's evident that it didn't matter as much that the violence isn't depicted so believably or sometimes not at all. When you have a strong main character, you can tolerate some weaknesses in the portrayal that are influenced by the time period. The story itself is able to captivate, especially due to the constant uncertainty about what is actually going on.
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There are undisputed genre classics that I shrug off and, at best, give them an average rating. On the other hand, there are films that I find underrated. I include The Killers among them. Because of the number of reviewers on FilmBooster, it is essentially an unknown film, although it has been shown on television here several times. If I were to compile a ranking of the best noir films, The Killers would be somewhere in the second half of the top ten. The screenplay expands a short Hemingway story about a cold-blooded murder on demand into a sophisticated scam in the underworld that surfaces years later thanks to an inquisitive and tenacious insurance agent. The famous Burt Lancaster plays an unusual role as a victim, and he's not the main character in the film. Overall impression: 90%.
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