Director David Fincher makes his return to the movies with a new action thriller tale of an assassin laser focused on revenge. The Killer stars Michael Fassbender as a nameless assassin, hereby referred to as just The Killer, who is left to hunt his employers who brutalized his girlfriend in an attempt to find and eliminate him following an assassination in Paris gone wrong where, for the first time, he missed his intended target.
Comparison is often called the thief of joy which this reviewer mostly avoids comparing one film to another in any review of a new film. Despite this strategy, it is hard for me to discuss The Killer without mentioning how much its DNA has in common with the classic 1967 classic French neo-noir Le Samouraï. While the natural inclination for many would be to compare this film to the more recent John Wick series where the two share brutal yet stylized killings in common, the assassin in this film follows a similar path as Jef Costello, seeking revenge after an assassination gone wrong turns into his employers turning into his hunters. Fassbender plays the assassin as a cool, skilled, solitary detective who methodically sniffs out the plot against him with a willingness to kill in order to do it, although this film is much more brutal than its 46-year old predecessor. Costello and The Killer share an icy demeanor with their actions speaking for them much more than their vocal cords ever do. The Killer does justice to the French classic’s plot and portrayal of a stoic assassin roaming around for revenge, serving as a worthy homage to the film even if it doesn’t reach the same cinematographic heights. Watching The Killer’s deliberate planning and stalking of his victims is just as insanely interesting to watch unfold as seeing whether he will be successful in achieving vengeance. This makes the film worthy of investment despite the fact that on its surface, the plot is very simplistic.
While the film is mostly about seeking revenge, it does attempt to make a statement about the world that it takes place in and thus, by extension, the world in which the viewer inhabits. Namely about the role of money in our society and how it can make those who cover it behave. The most striking example of this is the exchange The Killer has with his client turned foe once he finally tracks him down. When faced with the realization of what happened, the client is very matter of fact about what has taken place, all the deaths and attempted deaths that have happened due to his machinations. The client in fact, has barely retained a memory of setting in motion this chain of events and has to be reminded by The Killer of what happened. The cavalier attitude that the client displays is striking after the previous runtime has spent so much time establishing the urgency of what is happening while to him, it’s merely an afterthought; the equivalent of buying a random item in a grocery store checkout line and then forgetting about it.
The Killer is a lean, precise film that is perfectly paced and makes the most of its sparse plot with a stylized depiction of a methodical assassin and the exotic locales his revenge plot takes him to. Broken up into six chapters, the film’s editing gives it a literary feel as if you’re watching the graphic novel that it’s based on put directly to screen. Fincher establishes The Killer and his mindset perfectly with a detailed opening scene that documents his every move in preparation for making a kill in the midst of a luxurious Parisian backdrop that compliments the stylized portrayal of the titular assassin. Fassbender’s cool performance mirrors the character perfectly and takes the audience directly into his mindset. The film’s conclusion adds a bit of social commentary to the mix that’s not too in-depth, but adds just enough to make it interesting. The Killer is an entertaining action thriller that’s as cool as the other side of the pillow.
Image: Netflix
