The KILLING
1956 - Stanley Kubrick
This is the best of the best heist flicks in my book. Told with a non-linear narrative and omniscient narator, a small band of Noir losers led by Sterling Hayden try to rip-off a racetrack. One of the best endings ever (damn dog).
Gotta go with Pike on this one: When it comes to heist films,
The Killing and
The Asphalt Jungle are at the top of the list, although I would give
Jungle a slight edge--it just had certain elements and a cast I really like. Oddly enough, both starred Sterling Hayden, not one to make many lists of best actors but exceptionally good in these parts.
I also give top marks to
High Sierra (1941) with Bogart and Ida Lupino, which was remade in 1955 as
I Died a Thousand Times, with Jack Palance and Shelly Winters in the leading roles, and also as a Western,
Colorado Territory, with Joel McCrae. Although Bogart's character was named Roy Earle in that film, he was doing a Dillinger impression that could teach Johnny Depp a thing or two.
It's important to note
The Killing,
Asphalt Jungle, and
High Sierra were based on very good books to begin with. Both
Sierra and
Jungle were written by W.R. Burnett, an influential novelist and screen writer who also wrote the book
Little Ceasar and, later,
Dirty Harry. John Huston directed both
Jungle and
Sierra and co-wrote the scripts, all of which explain why those films are so damn good.
I'm also fond of
Thief (1981) with James Caan as one of the most hard-nosed and violent crooks ever. Another good heist film was the French-made
Any Number Can Win in 1963 with Jean Gabin and Alain Delon.