By Keith Walther | Rose Law Group Reporter
Masterful filmmaker David Fincher returns with an elegant, artistically crafted action thriller that reminds his audience he is still one of the best directors in Hollywood. “The Killer” is a mesmerizing and jarring display of perfect flow and execution that will glue its viewers to their seats to avoid missing a single unwasted moment. The story itself is not overly complex, in fact it follows a very direct, easy to follow path.
A man, whose real identity is never revealed, is known simply as the Killer (Michael Fassbender). Using an assortment of aliases based on old TV sitcom characters like Sam Malone (“Cheers”) or Howard Cunningham (“Happy Days”), this cold-blooded assassin has cultivated a successful career without being caught by mentally reciting a mantra of rules from which he never deviates, while listening to The Smiths as a calming mechanism. Unfortunately, he fails to expect the unexpected and narrowly misses a target, setting a clean-up plan into motion.
The client and contractors, looking to mitigate the issue by killing the Killer, finds the professional hitman’s hideaway, torturing his girlfriend to find him. This threatens to unravel the Killer’s mind as he seeks revenge against every single person involved while he tries to stick to his detached methodology. From Paris to the Dominican Republic to New Orleans to Florida to Chicago, nowhere is safe for the Killer’s prey.
3-time Oscar nominated director David Fincher puts on a clinic of efficiency with a movie that can teach young filmmakers the art of making a great film. “The Killer” is the second motion picture in a four film deal he has with Netflix, the first being 2020’s “Mank,” for which he received one of those three nominations. His meticulous level of detail is well known and on full display in this movie, ensuring every scene is made with purpose and fits eloquently within the pace of the film. When the main character reveals his steps and rules for a successful kill, the audience can’t help but wonder if this is the same mantra Fincher recites to himself in the execution of his movies. His adaptation of the graphic novel of the same name has been a passion project for Fincher nearly 20 years in the making. He should be an obvious choice for his fourth Oscar nomination, but he’s been overlooked before as he was with “Se7en,” “Fight Club,” and “The Game” to name a few.
As with every Fincher movie, the audience can expect professional grade, dazzling cinematography that enhances the quality of the production. There is an artistic precision to the camera shots that is iconic to Fincher’s stylistic view. He makes the camera act as an extension of the main character with more distant, stoic shots that convey the feeling of cold detachment along with smooth camera movements to illustrate the killer’s calm fluidity when executing his targets. One scene early in the film is an homage to Alfred Hitchcock’s “Rear Window” with the camera acting as the main character’s view, peeping into other apartment windows to reveal their private moments. There is even a fight scene that is perfectly choreographed and shot that is one of the most brutally realistic fight scenes you’ll ever see and makes “John Wick” look like amateur hour. Complimenting the outstanding cinematography is the musical score by 2-time Oscar winner Trent Reznor (“The Social Network” and “Soul”) of Nine Inch Nails fame. The almost robotic rhythm to the music further accentuates the killer’s soulless attitude. The only downside to making a film with such a level of detachment is it also removes the audience’s emotional investment in the story and character.
With a film devoted to the main character as “The Killer” is, a talented actor is needed to carry the burden of being the focus of nearly every scene in the movie. Michael Fassbender is such a talent and highly underrated actor, who has been absent from film since his last movie in 2019, “Dark Phoenix.” He makes this role of a cold and calculating hitman his own, infusing facial expressions devoid of life, seemingly allowing nothing to faze him. He purposefully avoids blinking during his scenes to make his character seem even more clinical and emotionless. When his inner monologue is audible as a form of narration, it is perfectly in sync with his on-screen movements and barely noticeable facial changes. Look for Fassbender to also star in “Next Goal Wins” later this month.
“The Killer” is a wonderful combination of entertainment and art and is an absolute must see for movie lovers. The real crime is that it had such a limited theatrical release, it is almost impossible to find a theater in which it is playing. The good news is that if you can’t find it in a theater near you, it will be available via Netflix Friday, November 10th. Don’t miss this one, it is the best film since “Oppenheimer.”
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