The Killers (1946)
Grade: 57
"The Killers" is a crime drama and mystery that is interesting and watchable. However, the movie is filled with tough guy characters that have no depth and do not always come across as credible.
Burt Lancaster stars as the Swede, a washed-up boxer who has turned to crime. He meets femme fatale Kitty (Ava Gardner) who further ruins his life by sending him to prison. Once freed, he participates in a heist and double crosses his partners, leading to his murder at the hands of contract killers.
These contract killers, shown at the film's beginning, are simply not believable. They are waiting for Lancaster to show at a diner. They sure keep a high profile however, badgering the staff and customers, when in real life they would likely wait outside in a car.
After the hit has taken place, the local police are incredibly indifferent, not bothering with the case. It is up to Lancaster's life insurance company to investigate. This is a common theme to other 1940s crime dramas ("Double Indemnity" comes to mind) but in this case it is especially difficult to accept, as the killers also threatened and tied up people at the diner.
The film has no less than two "dying criminal confesses" scenes. In the first scene, the incoherent, unconscious man just happens to mumble the exact information that the insurance agent (Edmond O'Brien) wants to know, just at the time he has arrived at bedside. The second scene has Gardner screaming at the dying man "Kitty is innocent!" over and over. Show some respect for the dead, Ava.
I guess in a crime drama, both bad guys and good guys have to be tough guys. But with no one showing any emotion and always wearing their poker faces, the characters become caricatures. Lancaster is an exception, performing his lovesick palooka role quite well.
Despite its weaknesses, "The Killers" is mildly entertaining. But it does not live up to its reputation as a film nwah, oops noir, classic.
http://members.tripod.com/~Brian_Koller/movies.html
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