From the very first frame, there is a sense of sanitized firm hand reaching out of the screen & placing it on our chest. The titular character speaks to us of his inner working to do what he does, with discipline. That discipline is extremely attractive to look at until you are washed repeatedly in real time but the films that focus on these intense methodical life snatchers are the culmination of that work. In showcasing that rigour, as laborious & boring it can be, it has that capacity to be a dark philosophical poetry on the human condition in an executioner. Yet the methodical execution (pun unintended) of the titular character as aforementioned keeps us at arm’s length with his toned, deadly & beautifully sanitized hands. This is “The Killer”.
Michael Fassbender is a geometrically sculpted nimble fellow that slides through this man with a sliver of humanness to keep us engaged. This is John Wick sans every showmanship. No flair but enough to wonder will he or won’t he when there is nothing but death between him and his target. There are rules to be recited, incessantly in his head to carry on what he has made a career out of. He does not seem like a sociopath nor questions his nature. The mere fact of his presence & the way Fassbender navigates this man is enough to root for him.
Yet, why do we need to root for him? Director David Finche nir keeps him the anchor throughout the film. The snapshot of the final moments of each of his targets reveals their character in its utmost pressure. That is all we get. Despite the acceptance of their fate by the time this man comes into their life, there is a hope, teetering one. Those make the interactions from hard fought violence to a gentle but sudden snap onto a relishing of final wishes. One such is played by Tilda Swinton who can fill the screen with so much history of this person through a 5 minute monologue. “The Killer” is filled with these & every lego piece of a scene set up by Fassbender’s character is a setting to that.
To say I did not enjoy the film would be a blatant lie. It is always a treat to see a master of the craft present a “let’s see whether I can perfect the age old assassin story to beyond perfection”. The master delivers & the perfection is there, just that humanity gets lost in the process. It is intentional but it does not satiate the thirst for this reviewer. As every tracking leads to the tense moment, the whole movie appears to be set for one final encounter in the end. And yet the way it arrives does not quantify the setup it concretely placed.
The tone of these heavy encounters might have been aimed at piquing the viewers for a repeat but the vignettes are building blocks & we are left searching for the building. The lone assassin’s mystery has been tirelessly ventured by blockbusters & auteurs alike. The absence or miniscule presence of humanity in a job of loneliness is where the auteur focuses while the adrenaline rush of feeling alive but taking a life sans human despair is where the blockbuster presentation focuses on. “The Killer” tries to merge the venn diagram into a single circle.
To watch any David Fincher’s presentation is a pleasure but to be led on a path of a big finale ending without a gut punch was a letdown. Nevertheless it is a film that does not bore you though the Killer reminds us of that in mere waiting to get to the meat of the work. Yet for a calibre of Fincher & the striking subliminal acting of Fassbender, this seems a bit underwhelming. That might not be fair to the creator as it is their prerogative on what they would like to take on. I wanted to know the motivation of a hitman that practices great skill of avoiding any form of empathy to venture a revenge fest to multi destination for his lover. How does the killer compartmentalize that? We might never know but I would have loved to see that film as well.
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