Synopsis
After a fateful near-miss, an assassin battles his employers, and himself, on an international manhunt he insists isn't personal.
Directed by David Fincher
Based on a Book Written by Alexis "Matz" Nolent
Starring Michael Fassbender, Tilda Swinton, Kerry O'Malley and Chris Parnell
Released on Netflix
Review
As the credits rolled, I was still contemplating how I felt about The Killer. You can absolutely tell that it's a graphic novel... and I felt like I watched a graphic novel. But I'm getting ahead of myself!
The Killer, a man of many names, is methodical and ruthless. But even an elite killer can make mistakes. When his mark gets away without a scratch, a clean up crew are sent to erase the loose ends. The Killer, however, doesn't take kindly to his quasi colleagues' efforts, and a battle begins to be the last man, or woman, standing.
Fassbender really does have the look for this role (a bit Brad Pitt from Bullet Train), with minimal changes he can look anything from stern and heartless, to an innocent bystander. His almost robotic behaviour at the beginning starts to crack as we get further into the story. It’s less about clean work and more about the necessary revenge. It’s all very subtle, but noticeable in little flashes throughout.
The Killer’s methodical nature makes the perfect structure for the film, the scenes flow well into each other because of it, meaning its 2 hour run time wasn’t a challenge at all. I could happily have watched more of it. At times you're essentially watching someone sitting in a window... on a bench... loitering in the street... but the verbose narration of the Killer is a wonderful contrast to his actual persona on screen.
While the cast list seems to be packed out, it's mainly smaller roles who come in for a scene to interact with The Killer. Those of you coming to see Tilda Swinton in action, may be slightly disappointed. This may just be my fault, but I had assumed she was going to be at least a significant role, and while she is in it more than some of the others, it's much more fleeting than I had assumed. Nevertheless, it was a well performed piece against Fassbender's Killer, and nothing less than you'd expect.
The muted colour palette suits this type of film, and it allows the Killer to blend well with almost every scene, giving him that forgettableness that a man in his line of work needs. It also felt almost calming to watch, which puts you firmly in the same mindset as him throughout.
Perhaps my only real negative about the film is the product placement. I get it... financing, but it was incredibly noticeable throughout. It felt one step away from Wayne’s World's level of obvious. You could say that this means it’s working, but it was obnoxiously in your face and detracted from the scene.
To end on a high though, The Killer has a fight with The Brute, some good ol' fashioned nonsensical violence. Absolutely fantastic bit of action.
What you should do
When it's available to you online through a Netflix subscription, there's no real drawback to watching it. Normally that's something I'd say about average things, but this is interestingly different, and worth a watch for that alone.
Movie thing you wish you could take home
Probably an awkward dinner date with Tilda Swinton.
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