The ‘Killer’ has all the characters that you can find in any movie directed by David Flincher, from the plot revolving around a hired assassin to portraying a detailed procedure of what the person is forced to do when his calculated world collapses. Flincher signatures are also evident in the story of a brutal perfectionist who keeps on regurgitating the same phrase “Forbid Empathy” to stay focussed.
Fincher builds on his reputation of being a filmmaker obsessed with perfection. Though based on Alexis “Matz” Nolent’s graphic novel, there are reasons to believe that the director has turned it into his most personal project till date.
Flincher had Michael Fassbender in the lead role. It suits him as the actor has already established himself as a soulless devil from his stint in “Prometheus” and carries the shades of David to “The Killer”, wherein he plays the role of a nameless protagonist.
Plot
The movie opens with a lengthy voiceover scene while audiences keep watching the assassin in a multi-day stakeout in the French Capital. He keeps watchful eyes on the café below, visits McDonald’s for his protein balance and listens to The Smiths on a loop. He does not try to remain calm and cool; rather he is cool without any effort. A dozen songs from the famous brand creates an incredible ambiance and enhances its deadpan humour.
However, the man attempts to blend in, realizing that his disguise makes him look like a German Tourist and French people don’t love German backpackers. Flincher focuses on character development through the preface and he along with Seven-famed scriptwriter Andrew Kevin Walker ensures to maintain the right pace so that audiences can get to keep a track of what is going on the big screen.
The idea clicks as it helps us understand the murderer’s psyche. The man presents a bizarre logic behind his killing spree (or maybe, he is trying unconsciously to comfort his deeply buried conscience) that the caravan of daily birth and death is unstoppable and he just adds a drop to the massive basket.
After a few days of his arrival in Paris, “The Killer”s’ intended victim along with his dominatrix arrives in the penthouse across the street but the killer misses, something that can never be expected of him. He hits the dominatrix instead of hitting the target. He knows that this ‘miss’ will not bode well for him. He runs home to the Dominican Republic only to discover his girlfriend in a serious condition. The clean-up men attacked his house and searched for both of them. His partner was rushed to intensive care.
At this point, The Killer decides to break his own rules. The man has enough money in foreign accounts and stocked storage units in many cities. So, he can run away, leaving no trace. The Killer promised to himself that he would never take anything personally as long as he was a part of the mission. But he decided to change his direction, going out for those who attacked his house and also those who hired these people.
“The Killer” has names Charles Parnell, Tilda Swinton and Arliss Howard in the supporting roles but the movie is simply a one-man show and Michael Fassbender does a good job as a stone-cold assassin forced to take revenge once the carefully constructed planning implodes.
The Killer Movie Review
Flincher is extremely passionate about his project and every frame reflects his dedication. He has long been interested in such a plot and his powerful crafting, dedication, perfection and obsession show through the movie.
He is fortunate to have some well-known names to help him in his project, including editor Kirk Baxter (“The Social Networker”), “Gone Girl” famed cinematographer Erik Messerschmidt and Atticus Ross and Trent Reznor as music composers.
From a technical perspective, “The Killer” can feel like a few films in the same genre but it is just because the same team was behind the making of those. Audiences can understand that they all are as dedicated as the notoriously passionate and perfectionist filmmaker. It is a complete teamwork and every scene along with soundtrack can give you a strong feel of the detailing.
It’s not just rough-around-edges kind of thing as Flincher has never believed in just lapping up accolades when there are several flaws. The Killer succeeds as an edgy thriller as the director has been able to fine tune it to the man’s killing assignment.
If someone has any problems with the movie on the ‘morality’ ground, neither Flincher nor Walker feels ashamed a bit. The Killer is a cold-blooded monster who does not repent for his actions. He cuts a victim’s neck without feeling any remorse and the scene sends a shiver down our spine. On the top of it, his procedural and cynical approach towards eliminating a life could leave many pissed off.
The story is not about morality in murder but the psychology of the murder. It is not preachy about redemption but points towards perfection, while rolling out the disaster unleashed upon the man believed to be a perfectionist. He makes a mistake and his whole world goes topsy-turvy. Compared to the entire movie, the last scene feels a little bit rushed. However, it may seem that Flincher and Walker are most reluctant to take any nonsense approach towards the climax.
The names of some elite brands like Amazon, Starbucks. WeWork and Wordle are invoked to convey a sly message about the cold and commodified world where a cold-blooded assassin moves around without being noticed because people are too busy with their own lives to pay attention to anything else. He takes advantage of people’s nonchalance towards collective security and too much selfishness to continue the heinous work he has been hired for. .
Finally, “The Killer” is a hard-core Flinchian project. He is happy to work with his best team again. However, deep in the play, it is not a repetition of his work, rather a refreshing take on his favourite theme and rebranding it into something new and brave. It presents a question to the audiences if they can afford to allow a killer to move freely among them.
Summary: “The Killer” movie revolves around a cold-blooded murderer who misses out on one of his targets and how an avalanche of attacks is unleashed upon him.
