The Asphalt Jungle (1950)

Just out of prison, a criminal mastermind (Sam Jaffe) plots a detailed jewelry heist that could net over half a million dollars. A shyster attorney (Louis Calhern) funds the heist and a crew consisting of a safecracker (Anthony Caruso), a driver (James Whitmore) and a hooligan (Sterling Hayden) is assembled. But everything that could go wrong goes wrong. Based on the novel by W.R. Burnett (HIGH SIERRA) and directed by John Huston. An undisputed classic of the noir genre, it's a sharp and unsentimental look at the seamy underbelly of a midwestern city where corruption isn't restricted to the typical thugs and hoods but extending to police and socially prominent lawyers. No one is untouched and one can't even like the pompous police commissioner (John McIntire). The cast is excellent right down the line and Harold Rosson's stark B&W cinematography is superb. Outside of the opening credits and the last three minutes of the film (effectively composed by Miklos Rozsa), there's no score during the film. With Jean Hagen, Marc Lawrence, Barry Kelley, Brad Dexter, Helene Stanley and as Calhern's mistress, Marilyn Monroe already showing signs of star quality though it would be another three years before she hit the jackpot.