Killer Content

Here's another one Ms. Spenser wasn't interested in at all: the new David Fincher movie, The Killer (2023).

It stars Michael Fassbender as the titular Killer. He is staking out a Parisian apartment from a deserted and under construction WeWork office. We see him waiting, doing yoga, trying to sleep and scoping out the neighborhood through his telescopic sight. He narrates throughout, mostly about his rules for being a paid assassin. Key points: Stick to the plan, avoid improvisation. Fight only the battle you are paid to fight. He is meticulous and precise. And he misses the shot and kills a bystander.

He makes his getaway and heads for his hideout in the Dominican Republic. There, he finds that the place was just invaded and his girlfriend was worked over. So he sets out to put a stop to this.

And so he starts working his way up the ladder, killing everyone involved, starting with the innocent cab driver who brought the invaders to his place. Then the lawyer who set up the hit, his secretary, the big guy who was one of the invaders, and Tilda Swinton, who was the other. Finally, the original client, who we'll spoil in a little. 

This is all done with quite a bit of dry humor. Some of it is structural, like when his narrative monolog is interrupted by someone at the door. Some of it is ... political? How modern commerce, WeWork, DoorDash, Amazon lockers, Apple watches, etc are pervasive. Everyone is always looking at their phones, including Fassbender, who is using his to carry out murders. Which is another piece of modern commerce, just a service commodity. Some of it is just sort of of silly, like how he always listens to the Smiths when he's on a job. Or when his careful plan just falls through and he has to improvise - like he said not to do.

In the end, he gets to the client, billionaire Arliss Howard. He makes sure the guy has no problem with him, and lets him live. Maybe he doesn't want the heat from killing a billionaire. Maybe it's just business. It certainly breaks the usual revenge plot. 

I'm not a super Fincher fan. Never saw Fight Club, maybe never will, I can certainly see some fine cinematic craftsmanship here. The sound design is interesting - like how we only hear the Smiths on the soundtrack when we're sharing Fassbender's point of view. 

But in the end, I wasn't quite blown away. I think my main problem is that it was too good of an action film, with too much in common with all the others, to be a real critique of the genre. I think I actually prefer The Hitman's Bodyguard in that respect. 

I can't believe I said that.