I am truly flabbergasted. I cannot understand why a director who created a masterpiece 35 years ago (at the time of writing this) would remake his own highly praised work of art into this completely empty, bland, forgettable piece of trash. Why? I realize that Mr. John Woo is getting on in years and may not have the passion he once had. And it certainly shows in this film that he must have been completely bored to repeat something he had done before and infinitely better to produce what we see here.
Absolutely nothing in this reboot/remake is characteristic of Mr. Woo's work. None of the original film's operatic ballet of multi-angle slow motion violence can be seen here. None of the emotional and melodramatic depth of the original film, whose story was simpler but deeper and more compelling in its execution, is experienced here.
Director: John Woo
Writers: John Woo, Brian Helgeland, Josh Campbell
Stars: Nathalie Emmanuel, Omar Sy, Sam Worthington
The economical and meaningful dialogue of the original is now replaced by unnecessarily wordy, inane, and embarrassing lines. The deeper themes, such as honor and loyalty, that would unite the antagonistic characters of his earlier works in mutual admiration, are totally absent here. The violence has no impact and is painted over with computer-generated imagery. Even the practical blood looks like bright red paint, the kind used in westerns of the 60s and 70s. The cinematography is bland and boring. It really looks like a 90s TV movie directed by a newbie.
The setting in France seems to have inspired some slight silliness and unnecessary forced humor in the film, including the soundtrack, typical of French action comedies. Not to mention the obvious continuity errors and poor editing. The entire film screams laziness and indifference.
Most of the individual cast members do not have the gravitas or charisma to provide or carry the emotional weight that could make the story more interesting to watch. The lead actress is downright poorly cast and probably for reasons of DEI agendas. The actress playing the singer has little to do and is mostly annoying, and without the deep emotional connection between her character and the killer that was so central to the original film’s drive, there’s no reason for audiences to care about her journey.
I’ll admit that John Woo’s original Killer is a film I’ve seen many times and am happy to call it one of my favorites, and I knew I’d be disappointed to see this new version. Most made-for-streaming films are mediocre by design, and this one is no exception, arriving without warning or fanfare. And it’s easy to see why. Whether out of contractual obligation or financial incentive, Mr. Woo seemed to sleepwalk through it. A great shame.
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