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The Asphalt Jungle is a brilliantly conceived and executed anatomy of a crime -- or, as director John Huston and scripter Ben Maddow put it, "a left-handed form of human endeavor." Recently paroled master criminal Erwin "Doc" Riedenschneider (Sam Jaffe), with funding from crooked attorney Emmerich (Louis Calhern), gathers several crooks together in Cincinnati for a Big Caper. Among those involved are Dix (Sterling Hayden), an impoverished hood who sees the upcoming jewel heist as a means to finance his dream of owning a horse farm. Hunch-backed cafe owner (James Whitmore) is hired on to be the driver for the heist; professional safecracker Louis Ciavelli (Anthony Caruso) assembles the tools of his trade; and a bookie (Marc Lawrence) acts as Emmerich's go-between. The robbery is pulled off successfully, but an alert night watchman shoots Ciavelli. Corrupt cop (Barry Kelley), angry that his "patsy" (Lawrence) didn't let him in on the caper, beats the bookie into confessing and fingering the other criminals involved. From this point on, the meticulously planned crime falls apart with the inevitability of a Greek tragedy. Way down on the cast list is Marilyn Monroe in her star-making bit as Emmerich's sexy "niece"; whenever The Asphalt Jungle would be reissued, Monroe would figure prominently in the print ads as one of the stars. The Asphalt Jungle was based on a novel by the prolific W.R. Burnett, who also wrote Little Caesar and "Saint Johnson" (the fictionalized life story of Wyatt Earp). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
Menu
Side #1 --
Introduction By John Huston
Play Movie
Scene Selections
Special Features
Introduction By John Huston
Commentary By Drew Casper With James Whitmore
Theatrical Trailer
Languages
Spoken Languages: English
Spoken Languages: Français
Subtitles: English
Subtitles: Français
Subtitles: Español
Subtitles: Off
Chapters
Side #1 --
1. Credits [1:26]
2. The Lineup [3:30]
3. One More Chance [2:30]
4. Doc's Proposition [5:19]
5. Okay to One Gus [3:43]
6. Doll With No House [2:10]
7. Meeting Emmerich [4:16]
8. Some Sweet Kid [2:10]
9. When Dix Gets Home [3:25]
10. Matters of Trust [4:06]
11. Double-Crossing Dream [4:21]
12. Doc Likes Dix [3:27]
13. Caper Rundown [4:05]
14. On the Move [4:37]
15. The Heist [6:27]
16. Getaway Misfire [2:18]
17. Nothing But Front [3:55]
18. Why Don't You Kill Me? [2:53]
19. Souls in Hell [2:29]
20. Dragnet Out [1:49]
21. Left-Handed Alibi [1:23]
22. Nasty Encounter [4:55]
23. The Trail to Doc [3:38]
24. Cobby Cracks [3:38]
25. Taking Trips [3:07]
26. The Dead and the Departing [6:30]
27. Travel Companion [4:55]
28. Playing Doc's Tune [1:31]
29. No Doctor for Dix [4:12]
30. Versus the Jungle [3:46]
31. Hanging On [1:53]
32. Cast List [2:51]
Features
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Introduction by John Huston derived from an archival interview
Commentary by author/film noir specialist Drew Casper with co-star James Whitmore
Art Director - Randall Duell
Art Director - Cedric Gibbons
Book Author - W.R. Burnett
Cinematographer - Harold Hal Rosson
Composer (Music Score) - Miklos Rozsa
Makeup - Jack Dawn
Sound/Sound Designer - Douglas Shearer
Much imitated, The Asphalt Jungle was one of the first caper films to show a crime and its consequences from the criminals' point of view. It's one of director John Huston's most gritty and suspenseful films, centering on a recently paroled criminal's scheme to make one last big hit. The cast of reliable character actors includes Sterling Hayden, James Whitmore and Sam Jaffe, and a little-known seductress named Marilyn Monroe, who had a small part. Based on a novel by W.R. Burnett, The Asphalt Jungle was innovative for 1950, as Huston told a crime-doesn't-pay story without the usual distancing and moralizing. It is more of a character study than an action film, and countless films that came later, all the way to Pulp Fiction, have paid it homage, some unknowingly. Some of the more direct remakes of the same plot include "Cairo", A Cool Breeze, and The Badlanders. ~ Michael Betzold, Rovi
John Huston : Best Film - Any Source - British Academy of Film and Televisio, 1950
John Huston : Best Director - Directors Guild of America, 1950
Harold Hal Rosson : Best Cinematography - Black and White - Hollywood Foreign Press Association, 1950
John Huston : Best Director - Hollywood Foreign Press Association, 1950
John Huston : Best Screenplay - Hollywood Foreign Press Association, 1950
Ben Maddow : Best Screenplay - Hollywood Foreign Press Association, 1950
John Huston : Best Director - National Board of Review, 1950
Harold Hal Rosson : Best Black and White Cinematography - Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sc, 1950
John Huston : Best Director - Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sc, 1950
John Huston : Best Screenplay - Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sc, 1950
Ben Maddow : Best Screenplay - Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sc, 1950
Sam Jaffe : Best Supporting Actor - Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sc, 1950
John Huston : Best Screenplay - Edgar Allan Poe Awards, 1950
Sam Jaffe : International Prize for Best Actor - Venice International Film Festival, 1950
