Classic Movie Review: 'The Killers (1964)'

The Killers (1964)

Directed by Don Siegel

Written by Gene L. Coon

Starring Lee Marvin, John Cassavetes, Angie Dickinson, Ronald Reagan

Release Date July 7th, 1964

Published July 14th, 2023

1964's The Killers shifts away from Ernest Hemingway's source material while maintaining a little of the framing device used in the 1946 version of The Killers from director Robert Siodmak. Director Don Siegel's biggest change however, came from beefing up the role of the titular Killers. Where Siodmak sidelines the killers after they've served their purpose, killing Burt Lancaster's Swede, Siodmak hired Lee Marvin and Clu Gulager to bring attention to these killers who also take on the role of the killers but also the role of the investigators, the role played by Edmond O'Brien in 1946.

That's not the only change to the story of The Killers. Don Siegel's vision of The Killers has a new protagonist as well. Johnny North (John Cassavetes) is a race car driver who partially loses his sight following a racing accident. Desperate for work, he's working demolition derby's under a fake name when his former lover, Sheila Farr (Angie Dickinson), approaches him with an offer. Sheila's new lover, a gangster named Jack Browning (Ronald Reagan, yes THAT Ronald Reagan), needs a getaway driver for a heist he's pulling with a small crew.

We know that Johnny agrees because by the time we see the heist coming together, in the modern timeline, Johnny is dead. While working as a shop teacher at a school for the blind, Johnny is approached by Charlie (Lee Marvin) and Lee (Clu Gulager), who kill him where he stands. Johnny seems to hardly react to his own death and his resignation in the face of life threatening danger and eventual death, haunts Charlie. Charlie becomes obsessed with knowing why Johnny was so willing to die at his hands.

From here, Charlie, and a reluctant but loyal Lee, begin working backwards through the life of Johnny North to uncover Johnny's motivation while also, perhaps, seeking the whereabouts of the treasure that seemingly caused someone to hire Charlie and Lee to kill him. First on the interrogation list is Johnny's former partner and mechanic, played by Claude Akins in a haunting and soulful performance. Akins explains Johnny's relationship with Sheila and how he warned Johnny about her duplicitousness only to end up losing his friendship and his business partner.

Sheila, on the other hand, plays it coy and cool. She clearly has something to hide and Charlie is immediately suspicious of her. He's soon even more suspicious of Browning who has gone legit and given up the world of crime. But where did he manage to find the money to do that? Well, you don't need to be a trained investigator to figure this one out. Soon, Charlie is playing a dangerous game with the ex-gangster, his wife, and the search for the money that has led to Johnny's death and perhaps many more deaths to come.

Lee Marvin is brilliant in the role of Charlie. Marvin's hardass, taciturn persona is the perfect vehicle for a puzzling obsession over another man's approach to death. Marvin is a man's man who can't fathom why a man wouldn't fight or beg for his life. He has to know why. Yes, he's driven also by finding the money and claiming an extra prize to go with what he and Lee were paid to kill Johnny, but it's his curious fascination with Johnny's approach to death that gives The Killers its unique narrative drive.

Slowly, almost imperceptibly, the journey of Johnny merges with that of Charlie as Charlie comes to more and more identify with Johnny without ever saying that he identifies with him. Watching an already cynical man find a way to lose even more faith in humanity over the course of an unusual obsession is fascinating to watch. It's like a quiet deconstruction of the masculine idea of survival. More and more Charlie comes to understand Johnny's heartbreak and, though he wouldn't admit it, he gets it, he seems to come to understand Johnny's despair and that journey is the dark heart of The Killers (1964).

The Killers (1964) was recently the subject of the monthly free screenings of The Film Foundation. A fully restored print of The Killers 1964 was streamed for free online in the Film Foundation online screening room on a double feature with the 1946 version of The Killers. It's an extraordinary double feature as both films look extraordinary for their age and wear and tear. It's wonderful to see these classics brought fully back to life. Next stop should be a home video release for both 1946 and 1964's The Killers. When that will happen? I don't know yet, but watch for it. Both versions of The Killers belong in the collection of any film fan.

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