The Killers

"There's more than one way to kill a man!"

1964 1h 33m EN

👍

6.9

SOLID

★6.9TMDB · 211

CrimeMystery

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

A hit man and his partner try to find out why their latest victim, a former race-car driver, did not try to get away.

“There's more than one way to kill a man!”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Lee Marvin
Charlie Strom
Angie Dickinson
Sheila Farr
John Cassavetes
Johnny North
Clu Gulager
Lee
Claude Akins
Earl Sylvester
Norman Fell
Mickey Farmer
Ronald Reagan
Jack Browning
Virginia Christine
Miss Watson

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Don Siegel
Writers: Gene L. Coon
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 7

ERA

Did you know

62 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Don Siegel, shot by Richard L. Rawlings. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by John Williams. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Richard Belding shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 7

CAST

Did you know

Lee Marvin and Angie Dickinson and John Cassavetes carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 7

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "There's more than one way to kill a man!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 7

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0058262 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Don Siegel directs. Richard L. Rawlings behind the camera. John Williams scores. Richard Belding cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

162 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
2Directed by Don Siegel, shot by Richard L. Rawlings. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
3Original score by John Williams. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
4Editor Richard Belding shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
5Lee Marvin and Angie Dickinson and John Cassavetes carry the top of the cast.
6Marketing tagline: "There's more than one way to kill a man!".
7IMDB entry: tt0058262 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

The technical file

Cinematography: Richard L. Rawlings
Original score: John Williams
Editing: Richard Belding
Costume design: Helen Colvig
Makeup / hair: Larry Germain
Sound: David H. Moriarty
Runtime: 93 min · 1h 33m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Original language: EN
IMDB: The Killers (1964)

Also by

Don Siegel

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Community reviews

What people are saying

John Chard2019-02-07
★ 8/10
The only man who isn't afraid of dying is dead already. The Killers is directed by Don Siegel and adapted to screenplay by Gene L. Coon from the short story written by Ernest Hemmingway. It stars Lee Marvin, Angie Dickinson, Clu Gulager, John Cassavetes, Ronald Reagan and Claude Akins. Music is by John Williams and cinematography by Richard L. Rawlings. Hit men Charlie (Marvin) and Lee (Gulager) enter a school for the blind and gun down motor mechanic teacher Johnny North (Cassavetes). He doesn't resist. Why? This question bothers Charlie and he sets about finding out... It's difficult when reading the name The Killers to not think of the 1946 film made by Robert Siodmak, a film that is revered as one of the quintessential movies of film noir. But Don Siegel's film, a re-jigging of the plot, is well worthy of consideration as quintessential neo-noir. Originally slated to be the first made for TV movie as part of a new era for movies on television, the film was pulled by NBC for being too violent. With the film also featuring a murder by sniper scene, the recent assassination of John F. Kennedy by sniper ensured The Killers was temporarily on unsafe ground. With Ronald Reagan making his last appearance on film before moving into politics, unusually playing a villain no less, the 64 version of The Killers has a bit of history. It's a film about double-crossing, murder and fateful yearnings, featuring amoral characters in a wonderfully constructed story that is told in flashbacks! Photographed in bright, almost garish, colours, it's very much the polar opposite to Siodmak's version, well visually at least, but it is very effective and striking, almost enhancing the lurid nature of Coon's screenplay. It's an aggressive film where the violence packs a punch, and the ending has a considerable black heart. The cast are mostly effective. Marvin and Gulager's hit-man pairing are deliberately off kilter in terms of personality, and it's these two that propel the movie forward (well backwards really). Cassavetes makes interesting work as live wire dupe Johnny, Akins does good as a pal watching on helplessly as Johnny loses his life footings and Dickinson sizzles as she fatalises the femme. Weak link is Reagan, who looks ill at ease playing a tough villain type. It's no surprise to learn later on down the line that he wasn't very fond of the role. Good quality neo-noir crafted by a man who knew how to do the real deal back in the day. 7.5/10

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