PLOT: A veteran assassin is diagnosed with a life-threatening illness and authorizes a kill on himself. After ordering the kill, an army of former colleagues pounce and a new piece of information comes to light. Insanity ensues.
REVIEW: There’s a certain type of film that has been relegated to streaming services in recent years. Sadly, mid-tier action films sprinkled with comedy stopped being considered worthwhile theatrical investments. Thus, those movies our grandparents would claim as “that great movie you need to see” were left to be discovered on Netflix and Max. But something strange is happening with Lionsgate this year and they felt a theatrical release was justified for The Killer’s Game. At first, I was intrigued because Bautista is known for picking interesting roles and the quality must be great to warrant such a release. Instead, I was met with a generic action film that switches gears so many times it doesn’t know what it wants to be. And proving why these are better left on streaming.
The concept of The Killer’s Game is quite intriguing with a veteran assassin, Joe Flood, being told he only has six months to live. Having just met the love of his life, he wants his life insurance policy to go to her, so he puts a hit on himself. Only to find out that the doctor’s switched up his paperwork and he’s not actually dying. Unfortunately, he also discovers that the contract can’t be terminated. So with an army of assassins baring down on him, Joe has to fight to stay alive, so he can finally live the life he’s always wanted. It practically feels straight out of the 90s and is very charming. Unfortunately, it becomes so generic and stereotypical that nearly every single story beat can be guessed.
As a Dave Bautista fan, I’m disappointed to say that he’s just kind of middle-of-the-road here. He’s essentially just playing a bland hitman with a heart and it doesn’t go much further than that. Even his line delivery feels like he’s just kind of sleepwalking through the part. However, I did enjoy his chemistry with Sofia Boutella, who surprised me with her vulnerability in the more romantic moments. As someone who tends to roll my eyes when she pops up in a movie, this is a big step for me. Terry Crews also has a fun part as one of the hitmen on Joe’s tail.
The Killer’s Game has this really bad habit of giving these big grand entrances to the assassins, only for them to be taken out lickety-split. This wouldn’t be an issue if it just happened the one time but it happens repeatedly, lessening the impact of each introduction. This wants to be Smokin Aces only it forgot to actually introduce interesting characters that the audience wants to see more of. Instead, all of these assassins just blend together and feel as generic as the next. The only one that really stands out is Crews, who is essentially just playing the same guy he always plays in action movies, and WWE’s Drew McIntyre, a non-sensical Scottish man who defecates in his own pants. Pom Klementieff feels severely underutilized and they really don’t take advantage of her action chops.
There are some fun action moments but most of them devolve into a grenade exploding and bodies being thrown in every direction. There’s one scene that involves jiu-jitsu that feels like a fun little chess battle. But otherwise, the action feels so overly choreographed that it loses all realism and therefore impact. I’m not saying I need a completely grounded film but every stuntman is just waiting to be pummeled. And the CGI blood is absolutely out of control and may be the most egregious of any 2024 release. It’d be one thing if it actually looked good but most of the time it just looks like blueberry jam. I would have preferred no violence over this CGI nonsense.
Despite Bautista’s great dramatic track record, he just can’t seem to pull it together when it comes to non-Marvel action. I think this can be attributed to the man clearly wanting to star in a Rom-Com, therefore taking any role that even somewhat resembles that. But this script is so weak that he’s unable to elevate the material to any considerable degree. There are some fun moments, but everything about The Killer’s Game screams generic and average. And with Bautista seemingly wrapping down his time as an action star, I really hope he figures it out before it’s too late. Because god knows the man can act his ass off.
THE KILLER’S GAME IS PLAYING IN THEATERS ON SEPTEMBER 13TH, 2024.