MovieChat Forums > The Asphalt Jungle (1950) Discussion > This movie is painful to watch

This movie is painful to watch

posted 14 years ago by ilikethemoneypit
39 replies | jump to latest

I watched this movie because I saw someone post that it was way better than Stanley Kubrick's The Killing and let me say it was not, it came nowhere close to it.
Once the robbery happened it became so painfully slow and long that I could barely watch and kept seeing how much time was left on it. By the time the scene came on with the girl dancing at the diner I wanted to hang myself. If you come across this movie and are considering watching it DON'T. Do yourself a favor and watch The Killing instead

[–] IForgotAbout19 14 years ago

Don't listen to this guy. "The Asphalt Jungle" is a fantastic and compelling movie the entire time.

[–] Eightythreeyearoldguy 14 years ago

I agree that THE ASPHALT JUNGLE is absolutely spellbinding. However, Kubrick's THE KILLING is also "heist noir" at it's very best. I really have trouble saying either of the two is better....they are far and away the best two heist films of all time, IMHO.

I'm the kind of guy, when I move - watch my smoke. But I'm gonna need some good clothes though.

[–] PillowRock 14 years ago

they are far and away the best two heist films of all time

Well, the "far and away" part is certainly open to debate. There are some other exceptional heist movies floating around. Rififi immediately comes to mind, for one.

[–] Phillip Marlowe 14 years ago

I was going to add Jules Dassin's Rififi also, but see PillowRock beat me to it. I think I prefer The Asphalt Jungle slightly overall, but the 30-minute, dialogue-less, heist sequence in Rififi is probably the best heist sequence of all time. Staying in French noir, the heist sequence in Jean-Pierre Melvill's Le Cercle Rouge is also superb.

[–] srklondie 9 years ago

I just suggested Rififi to him. Whether he takes our advice is another question. Dassin was a terrific director.

[–] The_TJT 8 years ago

Well, the "far and away" part is certainly open to debate.

Dog Day Afternoon (1975)

Or possibly The Sting (1973) - if it qualifies as a "heist film".

Asphalt Jungle is not far behind.

[–] MsELLERYqueen2 12 years ago

Why is it necessary to compare the two movies and to choose between them, anyway?

~~
Jim Hutton: talented gorgeous hot hunk; adorable as ElleryQueen; SEXIEST ACTOR EVER

[–] hammer4 10 years ago

Good point.

[–] 10 years ago

[deleted]

[–] srklondie 9 years ago

Give ' Rififi ' a try.

[–] hoov-4 14 years ago

One of the best movies ever made. I like this one, Out of the Past, DOA and the Killing as far as old 50's movies go. I watch this over and over. I can't fathom why anyone wouldn't like it.

[–] nettwench 13 years ago

I agree. It's one of my favorite movies - Sterling Hayden is just so compelling, and the story is so tragic - none of these people really has anything to look forward to, you know it will all end tragically, but it's gripping and gritty.

Ssssshh! You'll wake up the monkey!

[–] rubyredjewel 14 years ago

I watch it every time it comes on and it was on TCM today. It is a tragedy but I love the characters who are the bad guys. I want so much for things to work out but I also want the cops to get their men! Every one is first rate and Sterling Hayden, Sam Jaffe,and Louis Calhern are a joy to watch! I can't call it between this & 'The Killing'. Both are worthy of 5 stars!
´¨¨)) -:¦:-
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((¸¸.·´ ..·´ Jewel-:¦:-
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[–] 14 years ago

[deleted]

[–] BlackGas 14 years ago

Ignore him.

I saw this last night because got 2 hours of sleep the night before and I though it would be "nice to doze off to."

FALSE.

It was so gripping It woke me right up.

Even Marilyn Monroe's acting is tolerable in this one

[–] mistereight8888 12 years ago

Have to agree with OP.

This looks good, but, aside from Hayden and Jaffe, the casting isn't that great. The performances are fine, but many of the actors aren't that interesting.

Overall, it was neither clever nor gripping.

Perhaps in its day it was something, but 63 years later it comes across as a run-of-the mill procedural.

I found zero suspense, especially during the heist, but also overall.

[–] noveltylibrary 9 years ago

>>>This looks good, but, aside from Hayden and Jaffe, the casting isn't that great. The performances are fine, but many of the actors aren't that interesting.

This. With the exception of the amazing Jean Hagen.

[–] bigpeeler 14 years ago

Man, don't be some pragmatic about what you watch. Open your mind and give it another chance. It's a great film in it's own right.

"Sir, you don't want to rent that movie. That's one of those you have to read."

[–] MycroftHolmes 13 years ago

I'm a big Kubrick fan, but I do prefer The Asphalt Jungle to The Killing. Surprisingly, TAJ looks better. The story is more compelling to me and I think it gets more exciting AFTER the robbery. I do love them both, though. I think maybe it may have suffered from the comparison and you were seeing it with a closed mind.

What we have here is failure to communicate!

[–] Seller7862 13 years ago

"By the time the scene came on with the girl dancing at the diner I wanted to hang myself. If you come across this movie and are considering watching it DON'T"

I took a poll and it turns out the vast majority on IMDB are upset you didn't hang yourself. But there's still time. If you can't afford the rope I'm sure the gov't welfare program you're on will give you the needed cash.

[–] Incorrigible1 13 years ago

"This movie is painful to watch."

Such a thread title about a film classic as this should instead be entitled "Hey, look at me! I made a dumb comment about a great movie!"

[–] johndeckbose 13 years ago

There's always going to be idiotic claims made on IMDb but this one ranks with the dumbest.

The Asphalt Jungle is one of the 5 Essential American Film Noirs, along with The Killing, Double Indemnity, The Killers, and Out of the Past.

There isn't a wrong note in The Asphalt Jungle, nor a sequence that lags in any way. Clearly, the OP of the thread has some kind of MTV attention deficit disorder.

To tell you the truth, when I saw the topic line, I assumed he meant it was "painful to watch" because he was simply overwhelmed by the artistry, by the unrelenting authenticity and excellence. It never occurred to me someone could describe this movie as "painful" in any other context.