The Asphalt Jungle

 

 

              

           Continuing with my brother’s list of movies I need to see. A film noir classic that long story short had to see again just because I personally felt I need to watch twice because I felt I missed something and my second viewing of it made me realized that this is a important film noir classic, because it brings a more humanized version to the convicts as well as introducing us to the ever beautiful Marylin Monroe. 

            Recently released from prison, Doc Erwin Riedenschneider (Sam Jaffie) concocts a plan to steal one million dollars in jewels. Doc gathers a team of small-time crooks, including tough guy Dix Handley (Sterling Hayden), a safecracker as well as a getaway driver and a lawyer, while the success of the heist becomes a go until a stray bullet kills one of the men. As they scramble to pick up the pieces after the theft, the men let their greed get the best of them while entangling themselves in webs of deceit, treachery and murder. 

            Whenever I watch the film noir genre, I always watch films that have a blend of both private detectives at the wrong side of the law, murder and sometimes foreseeable fate. The Asphalt Jungle is one of those film noirs where they blend both of humanizing criminals who are always down on their luck and wants to succeed, but the film takes it back to that foot in reality where crime doesn't pay and this isn't like the Ocean's 11 films where they just get away with it in the end, or you root for them because their fighting the system or you know any times when we watch films about Jessie James or Robin Hood. And sure you get that with actors like Sterling Hayden and Sam Jaffie but, if you take a realization pill and notice that in life nobody gets away with crime, and fate always comes back to bite you in the a**, and that's what John Huston does great with Asphalt Jungle, is making these characters relatable and you want them to succeed in the end but life or crossing the line of crime, fate will always come in the way or the better explanation is that crime never pays, hell, that's one of the many reasons why I wouldn't commit a crime because I'd find it to be extremely hard furthermore you'll never succeed in the end I mean it's not like Grand Theft Auto where you can win all the time especially when you beat the game. The other thing in what makes the film great is that Huston shows that even when you pull a perfect crime, greed always gets in the way especially when you have criminals around you for which that's what makes films like these more realistic, because sure you can get away with robberies back then, but now it's almost impossible to pull off a robbery. I still say Marilyn Monroe's best performance was Don't Bother to Knock, though this film you slowly realize that Monroe was going to be a growing superstar, and the fact that Huston saw something in Monroe, showed that even John Huston can see future movie stars for obvious reasons she does a fantastic job playing a femme fatale, and a seductress. Actor Sterling Hayden, needs to be deserved a lot of credit as an actor mainly because he's been in a few films most notably in two of Stanley Kubrick's films like The Killing and Dr. Strangelove and now the Asphalt Jungle, and while watching this film I had this feeling that I've seen him in something and I couldn't find where I've seen him in, until I looked him up and I was surprised that he was the cop that got shot by Al Pacino in the Godfather. For which in all honesty it's awesome especially because it's always the little things, though granted there's a ton of movies that I haven't seen and moreover will have that feeling again when I watch more classic films. I would highly recommend watching The Asphalt Jungle, for great reasons this was one of the first heist films where you see the criminals as everyday people not always horrible people but trying to find ways to survive in a crime-filled environment. So, if you have Turner Classic Movies on your favorite cable channel then I would highly recommend searching for it or you can always use the TCM app too.