The Killer’s Game (2024)
Directed by: J.J. Perry
Premise: An assassin (Dave Bautista) is diagnosed with a terminal illness and puts out a contract on himself, anticipating the life insurance payout will benefit his girlfriend (Sofia Boutella). He discovers that the diagnosis was wrong and he must fend off killers seeking a payday.
What Works: The Killer’s Game pairs Dave Bautista and Sofia Boutella as a hitman and his girlfriend. This film uses Bautista and Boutella effectively, playing to their strengths. Bautisa is physically imposing but he also conveys sensitivity and humor. His character is established as an ethical killer—he only assassinates bad people and their henchmen—and the assassin has second thoughts about his career. Boutella is a good actress but Hollywood films have rarely used her well. Boutella’s role in The Killer’s Game is underwritten but the actress gives her character life and Boutella and Bautista are likable and their romance is convincing. The Killer’s Game introduces a roster of colorful assassins, many of them with a superhero-vibe, which punches up the otherwise mundane shoot-’em-up movie proceedings.
What Doesn’t: The Killer’s Game starts out pretty well by establishing a likable love story, colorful villains, and a goofy inciting incident in which Bautista’s character believes he’s terminally ill due to a paperwork mix up. But the filmmakers have trouble leveraging the potential of the material. Bautista’s character hides his profession from his girlfriend and breaks up with her when he believes he’s sick. The deception and heartbreak apparently count for nothing because there are no consequences. When the truth is revealed the couple barely even talk about it. There are a lot of villains in The Killer’s Game but no one is ever anything more than their costume. The film has no sustained conflict. The assassins are introduced and then just as quickly killed off. The body of the picture lacks escalation. It’s a series of violent vignettes that could be rearranged in any order without changing the outcome. The absence of character is evident in the action set pieces. The assassins rarely fight or die in ways that reflect the uniqueness of the characters. The set pieces of The Killer’s Game also lack the showmanship of recent action pictures such as Kill and Monkey Man. For all its violence, The Killer’s Game is just not very engaging. It also looks ugly. The film has a drab color palette and often looks flat.
Bottom Line: The Killer’s Game is a generic assassin shoot-‘em-up that wastes the talents of its central actors. Everything about it is mediocre and familiar. With so many great action pictures being made these days, The Killer’s Game is just not competitive.
Episode: #1015 (September 29, 2024)