The Asphalt Jungle

THE ASPHALT JUNGLE is a sometimes unsung triumph of director/writer John Huston. Sterling Hayden plays a down and out hoodlum who pairs up with cheesecake obcessed master thief Sam Jaffee. The seedy urbane characters that populate their world keep you glued to the screen. Marilyn Monroe is perfect as the spoiled mistress of crooked lawyer Louis Calhern. James Whitmore deserved an Oscar for his role as Gus, the diner owner with a fondness for kittens and crime. Has a great look, will make you pine for more black and white.

I guess the great John Huston knew what he was doing when making this film. Get the right cast and so he did.! The timeless touches in this film make it so watchable so often that we forget that a studio like MGM rarley made a gutty film like this.

Every character in the " Asphalt Jungle" has his/her moments! When Angela Phinley says to Emerich( Calhern) what will happen and Emerich responds the appropriate " you'll have lots of vacation".

Marc Lawrence as cobby has never been better since his part as Ziggy in "Key Largo" Jean Hagen shows some real ability and we wonder why she was used in future films to a lessor effect.Hayden, as Dix Hanley has a warped credo for a man on the edge.Sam Jaffe steals the show as doc..smart enough in most items save for your girls dancing in bars.

Even the supporting cast shines under Huston, Mcintre and the police chief , Brad Dexter as the crooked investigator, Barry Kelly as the corrupt cop with James Whitmore playing a man whose body is warped but whose soul is still intact.

Thanks goodness there is no music( film score) during the jewel heist. This fact alone lets us know this is a real film..unlike the ones being released today.

Mikos Rosza's score is emotional for sure..and the final in a Kentucky field is very poetic a la Huston

Perfection...

C Pope

I hadn't seen The Asphalt Jungle for nearly 30 years until tonight, I think I must have (wrongly) considered it to be a "modern film", ie post rock'n'roll and dismissed it as too earthy as a result. Well I was wrong, it's certainly a Golden Age film made with high production values, with all the right actors, direction, music and story the Golden Age had produced. The music especially links it back to Double Indemnity and of course Huston to The Maltese Falcon, Jaffe to Lost Horizon etc. It was simply a signpost to the type of films to come , the ones I avoid.

It's gritty, as realistic as a gritty fantasy could be in 1950, as realistic as I want. The multi character interplay sticks in the mind, everyone's grafting and ready to dump on the next guy, apart from The Hooligan who dumb as he is really has a heart. It's Sam Jaffe's film though, his calculating but flawed dirty old man character was a classic perv-ormance, nowadays we would not have been spared the sleaze, but he walked a fine line successfully.

And again, the sleazy relationship between Uncle Louis Calhern and young Marilyn Monroe was perfectly handled.

All in all a marvellous film from the twilight years of the Golden Age.

I'm a sucker for a good heist film, and three of the best I've ever seen were made around 1955/56 - 'Rififi', 'Bob le flambeur' and 'The Killing'. Now they are still three of the greatest crime thrillers ever made, but now that I've finally seen 'The Asphalt Jungle' it's obvious what source those movies were drawing on! Not that I'm saying they're rip offs, they're not, but they are kind of three (excellent) variations on Huston's theme. 'The Asphalt Jungle' must therefore be seen as the most influential crime movie of the modern era, and the blueprint for every subsequent caper movie ('The Anderson Tapes', 'Thief', 'Reservoir Dogs', 'The Usual Suspects', 'The Score',etc.etc.) This superb film noir is almost impossible to fault. The script is first rate, John Huston's direction is inspired, Sterling Hayden - possibly America's most underrated actor - is fantastic as troubled ex-con Dix Handley, and the ensemble cast are all excellent, especially James Whitmore ('Them!'), Louis Calhern ('Notorious'), Sam Jaffe ('The Day The Earth Stood Still') and John McIntire ('Psycho'). The early role for Marilyn Monroe made a strong impact on a lot of people, but I was even more impressed by Jean Hagen as Doll. She is unforgettable and her scenes with Hayden are wonderful. Why did she never become a major star? This is a crime classic and brilliant entertainment. Highly recommended!

This is an amazing film and one that serious film buffs need to see. However, while it is clearly an example of Film Noir, it represents a very realistic style of Noir--lacking the dramatic excesses of some (such as KISS OF DEATH and its wheelchair scene) or super-snappy dialog (like DRAGNET). I actually like all three types of Noir films but when it comes to realism, this film ranks up there with HE WALKED BY NIGHT and T-MEN--and this is certainly good company.

The movie is a step-by-step case study of a crime being organized, executed investigated and resolved. While it could have been shot documentary-style (like a few Noir films, such as NAKED CITY), it was handled like a traditional crime drama except that the focus tended to shift back and forth between the criminals and the police--though the focus tended to be on the criminals a bit more often. This really helped make the movie exciting and worked very well. What also helped the movie was the exceptional acting by mostly unknowns or long-time character actors. Good Noir usually does NOT star big names and having the film anchored by Sterling Hayden (who was amazing), Sam Jaffe and Louis Calhern was an excellent move. To assist them were some other exceptional actors, such as James Whitmore and Marilyn Monroe (in a small but exceptional role).

However, despite the amazing acting, the biggest star of the film was the taut script. From start to finish, it sparkled and abounded with realism and an unflinching message that crime doesn't ultimately pay. The total package is one of the best Noir films ever--only exceeded by a small number of movies (such as my favorite Noir, THE KILLERS). See this film!

By the way, please take a look at the very amazing biography of Sterling Hayden on IMDb. I did and was totally blown away--what an amazing life he led. It all sounded so amazing that if they turned it into a film, many would think it was fiction!!