spectacular jewel heist. Fresh out of jail, “Doc” has it all
planned out. But bad luck and betrayal will make it
unravel.
Directed by John Huston Starring Sterling Hayden,
Jean Hagen, Sam Jaffe, James
Whitmore, Marilyn Monroe
Why
I Liked It – A classic “heist” film with a great cast and
director leading the way.
Though a bit of a flop at the
time (it’s total profit according to M.G.M. was $40,000), the
critics have always loved it. As the years have gone by, the quality
of the movie shines brighter than ever.
It starts with a
solid story. Doc is the brains of the outfit, a careful planner who
considers every detail. He needs a financial backer to pull off the
job that will allow him to retire. A corrupt banker fills the bill,
and the rest of the gang (driver, safe cracker and muscle) gathered.
John Huston arranges the pieces and then keeps them rolling to the
end. He does an inspired job of staying out of the way of the story.
No Hitchcock-ian cameos, no trademark cuts, shots or stylistic
flourishes. Huston’s style is to keep it as simple as possible. The
result is worthy of the critical praise.
I will admit to some
doubt upfront. Sterling Hayden had a long-standing reputation as a
less than gifted actor. Right out of the box here, he is wooden and
awkward. As the story unwinds, you discover that this is the
character. Dix Handley is a country boy trapped in a big city. He
doesn’t have much to offer beyond his size and ability to use it
violently. His goal is to get back to the Kentucky horse farm of his
childhood. The performance grows as the movie heads to its
finish.
He’s not the only one who nails the performance.
This is a wonderful cast, even though several key roles filled by
actors at the very beginning of their careers. Jack Warden makes his
film debut here, and Marilyn Monroe is an unknown. Both are great in
small roles. Sam Jaffe earned his only Oscar nomination as Doc.
There’s an entire collection of great performances, large and
small, here. In many versions of the movie, you’ll see Monroe splashed across the cover or posters. She wasn’t mentioned in the originals, but she thought this was one of her best performances.
Louis B. Mayer (the head of the studio that
made the movie) thought “Asphalt Jungle” was awful. He said it
was “…full of nasty, ugly people doing nasty things.” Gotta
say the movie mogul hit it on the head. But that’s the beauty of
the movie. These are real people, most of whom aren’t nice people.
They all have reasons for why they do what they do. Some good, some
bad, some indifferent. In the end, it makes a great movie.
Rating
– **** Recommended
Stories Are My Life 
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