The Killer (2023)
8/10
Another winner from Fincher
5 November 2023
David Fincher just about always knocks it out of the park. Even with something I don't really connect to emotionally or find riveting, like Mank, I can appreciate and generally see what he's going for.

The Killer will probably end up feeling a little underrated. It's set to go to Netflix soon, where people will discuss it for about a week and then it'll disappear into the sea of content. It even happens to the most provocative and conversation-starting of movies (when's the last time you heard someone talk about 2022's Blonde?)

The generic name might not help, but I could also see that being part of the commentary. I do love how narratively this is nice and simple, frequently tense, and quite entertaining, but there's a fair bit going on under the surface. There are themes here that it feels like Fincher's explored a good deal throughout his career (narratively and visually it's very different to Fight Club, but thematically, it feels reminiscent), and tonally/stylistically, it's right up his alley. A precise and calculated filmmaker taking on a story about a seemingly precise and calculated assassin - you love to see it.

I was glad to see this in a cinema. It might've been harder to get immersed in the deliberate pacing and quieter moments if I'd watched it at home. The use of sound and music was also fantastic, and was helped immensely by the cinema's sound system.

Also, this film's got to have what will end up being one of the year's best action sequences. You'll know it when you see it.
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