The Killers (1946) - Quotes

Seeking Protection from Mr. Reardon

Kitty: Can you put me away, Mr. Reardon?

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Unexpected Preferences in Conversation

Kitty: I thought you didn't like the Green Cat.

Reardon: Only when I'm not expected.

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Miscommunication Leads to Unexpected Consequences

Swede: Swell idea you guys had. Leave me holdin the bag at the half-way house while you split up the dough, huh?...

Colfax: The half-way house burnt down last night. That's why we came here.

Swede: Somebody ought to have let me know.

Colfax: You were told, you're here.

Swede: Next time, play it straight.

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Life and Death in Uncertainty

Blinky: He shouldn't have hit you...

Doctor: Beats me. I don't know what keeps him going.

Reardon: Will he be able to talk anymore?

Doctor: He's dead now, except he's breathing.

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Tension Among Characters in The Killers

Kitty: [To Big Jim] What'sa matter with you?...You're nervous. You're all in a sweat.

Colfax: You keep your mouth shut if you don't want it slapped shut. You've been askin for it lately.

Swede: Hey!

Colfax: Any objections?

Swede: Yeah.

Dum Dum: Keep out of this, Swede. She's his girl.

Kitty: [To Big Jim] Mind your own business, Swede. I can take care of myself. You touch me and you won't live till morning.

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Symbolism of Harps in Irish Culture

Swede: You know what harps mean?

Charleston: Angels play em.

Swede: They mean Ireland. That's why they call them Mick's harps. Kitty's Irish. She give me this.

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Disdain for Brutality in Fights

Swede: Do you like the fights?

Kitty: I'm afraid I've never seen one.

Swede: No kiddin'.

Kitty: I hate brutality, Mr. Andersen. The idea of two men beating each other to a pulp makes me ill.

Lilly: I saw all Swede's fights.

Kitty: [Kitty is called away, and slinks off] How wonderful of you! I could never bear to see a man I really cared for being hurt.

Swede: She's beautiful.

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Morning Greetings Between Reardon and Stella

Reardon: Good morning, Stella.

Stella: Good morning, dream boy.

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Avoiding Unwanted Information and Assistance

Swede: There's nothin I can do about it.

Nick: I could tell you what they look like.

Swede: I don't want to know what they're like. Thanks for comin'.

Nick: Don't you want me to go and see the police?

Swede: No. That wouldn't do any good.

Nick: Isn't there something I could do?

Swede: There ain't anything to do.

Nick: Couldn't you get out of town?

Swede: No. I'm through with all that runnin around.

Nick: Why do they wanna kill ya?

Swede: I did something wrong - once. Thanks for comin'.

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Planning a Confrontation with the Swede

Max: I'll tell ya what's gonna happen. We're gonna kill the Swede. You know big Swede that works over at that filling station?

Manager: You mean Pete Lunn?

Max: If that's what he calls himself. Comes in every night at six o'clock, don't he?

Manager: Yes, if he comes.

Al: We know all about that.

Manager: What are ya gonna kill him for? What did Pete Lunn ever do to you?

Max: He never had a chance to do anything to us. He never even seen us.

Al: He's only gonna see us once.

Manager: What are ya gonna kill him for?

Max: We're killin him for a friend.

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Discussion on Dinner and Expectations

Al: [after learning that the dinner menu is unavailable until 6] Everything we want's on the dinner. That the way you work it, huh? What do you do here nights?

Max: They eat the dinner. They all come here and eat the big dinner.

Manager: That's right.

Al: You're a pretty bright boy, aren't ya??

Manager: Sure.

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Consequences of Deception and Unforeseen Love

Swede Andersen: Nobody can cheat me and get away with it.

Nick Adams: He wasn't a bad sort of fella...easy enough to get along with.

Lilly: Right then, I knew the boat had sailed and poor Ole had fallen in love with dynamite.

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Late Night Errand for Colfax's Message

Kitty Collins: Colfax sent me to tell the others what had happened and that they would meet at the farmer's instead. I went to Blinky Franklin first, and then to Dum Dum. I saved the Swede till last. It was nearly two in the morning when I got there.

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A Dream of Escape and Opportunity

Kitty Collins: I hadn't seen him for a long time, but the minute I laid eyes on him, I knew. He was always looking at me. And it doesn't sound like very much, but he always carried a handkerchief I'd given him...I hated my life, only I wasn't strong enough to get away from it. All I could do was dream of some big payoff that would let me quit the whole racket. The Swede was my chance to make my dream come true. If I could only be alone with him for a few hours. But Colfax was always there. I thought it was hopeless. Then suddenly, my chance came.

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Unfinished Business with Kitty

Big Jim Colfax: If you do run onto her, let me know, will ya? After you're through with her, I'd like to have a word or two with Kitty myself. We got some unfinished business.

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Betrayal and Consequences in The Killers

Big Jim Colfax: If there's one thing I hate, it's a double-crossing dame...the Swede never had a chance, did he? Any one of the gang that ran onto him would have been sure to knock him off. You might say Kitty Collins signed his death warrant.

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Prioritizing Work Before Future Dealings

Big Jim Colfax: The job comes first. But afterwards, we'll have business together.

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Planning an Escape with Uncertainty

Blinky Franklin: Step on it, can't you get any more out of it than this? Looks like a good clean getaway. That's too bad you had to shoot that guy at the gate...Did it look like 200 G's to you? Most money I ever saw at once. Wonder if the others are plannin the same luck we are. They should be - they got away before we did. I guess the Swede made it all right. I seen him running for his heap and nobody was between him and it. Sure, he got away. Keep your eyes peeled for Polk Road. It's a left turn there, yeah. A left on Polk Road. We oughta be there in another five minutes. Hello, farmer.

Concerns About Rain and Uncertainty

Blinky Franklin: [car] If that guy don't call by 10:30, we better get started anyway. Yeah, each one steal his own heap ...I never was in a hat factory before... Gimme two cards. I'll take three. If this rain keeps us, they'll be mud up to the axles on them hick roads. How many miles of dirt road is it to the half-way house? I don't like anything about capers in the rain. Rain always gives me the creeps. I hate rain.

Beware the allure of tempting distractions

Charleston: Stop listening to those golden harps, Swede. They can land you into a lot of trouble.

Challenges of Taking Big Risks

Charleston: If it's as big as you claim, it's not gonna be any easy pickings. Nothin that big ever is.

Understanding Silence in Expression

Charleston: A girl don't write. That don't mean she's sick like you might think. Not necessarily.

The Distant Bright Star Reflection

Charleston: You see that bright star in the center...brightest star in all the heavens. Only it's so far away, it don't seem like it.

Life in a Confining Space

Charleston: For nearly two years, we weren't never more than eight and a half feet apart. That's how big the cell was.

Unrequited Love and Its Complications

Sam Lubinsky: She was always in love with him...and I was always in love with her. It worked out fine for me, anyway.

Consequences of Violence and Its Impact

Sam Lubinsky: You're through...That hand will never be good again - not for fighting...It's a lucky thing. You aren't punchy yet. Now suppose it was your brains were scrambled instead of your hand.

Betrayal Revealed Through Midnight Message

Jim Reardon: [to Colfax] He (Dum Dum) said Kitty brought him word at midnight about the changed meeting place. The half-way house didn't burn down till nearly three in the morning. That meant Kitty had a partner. And who could it be but you.

Consequences of Past Actions Catching Up

Jim Reardon: [to Kitty] As soon as you could break away, you left him flat. I'd like to have known the old Kitty Collins. You were in the clear because no one knew you'd been with the Swede. You had nothing to fear from anyone. Too bad it had to catch up with you now.

Betrayal and Greed in The Killers

Jim Reardon: It was Kitty Collins and not the Swede that reaped the golden harvest...When the gang met to divvy up after the robbery, the Swede pulled a fast one and walked off with the whole take...That same night, he and Kitty were together in Atlantic City. She walked out on him a couple of days later. The money disappeared when she did.

Suspicion Surrounds Missing Money and Disappearing Girl

Jim Reardon: [to Dum Dum, about Kitty] I think she knows where the money is...The Swede and some girl checked into an Atlantic City hotel the night of the holdup. Two days later, the girl took a powder. I've got an idea the dough went with her.

Unraveling Secrets of the Swede's Money

Jim Reardon: [to Dum Dum] You don't know what the Swede did with the money or you wouldn't be here tearing his room to pieces. But maybe you do know things that put together with the things I know will tell me where the money is.

Mysterious Motives Behind a Killings

Jim Reardon: This isn't a two-for-a-nickel shooting. Two professional killers show up in a small town and put the blast on a filling station attendant. A nobody. There was no attempted robbery. They were out for only one thing. To kill him. Why?