The Killer (2024) Review!!

Synopsis – An assassin tries to make amends in an effort to restore the sight of a beautiful young singer.

My Take – Known famously for helming for action packed Hollywood features like Hard Target (1993), Broken Arrow (1996), Face/Off (1997) and Mission: Impossible 2 (2000), John Woo is indeed an iconic director, whose style and process left a significant mark on the genre for many other upcoming filmmakers to follow.

However, his real claim to fame came by becoming a pioneer of heroic bloodshed films and the gun fu genre in Hong Kong action cinema, mainly through several notable films that include the likes of A Better Tomorrow (1986), Hard Boiled (1992) and of course, The Killer (1989).

And since his return to Hollywood after 20 years with Silent Night (2023) largely went unnoticed, director Woo decided to make headlines with a decision to remake his own seminal 1989 masterpiece for the English speaking audience. Surprising, considering how plans of a remake has been kicking around for the vast majority of the original film’s lifespan.

Written by Josh Campbell, Matt Stuecken and Brian Helgeland who have adapted the original Hong Kong screenplay to a Paris setting, the Peacock release plays the material in a slightly lighter fashion, resulting in an experience that is overall entertaining and well anchored by its charming leads.

But while the remake ticks every stylistic box for die-hard enthusiasts, it also doesn’t do anything we haven’t seen before. Where the original was a bombastic melodrama of violence and honor, this update is a distinct ballet of bloodshed and redemption, something on the lines of what filmmaker Luc Besson and his company EuropaCorp usually produce.

Simply told, despite shifting most of the film’s elements to a modern setting, the remake struggles to escape the long shadow cast by its 1989 original, but, on its own is perfectly serviceable even if it doesn’t reach close to the pinnacle of Woo‘s original work.

Set in Paris, the story follows Zee (Nathalie Emmanuel), a highly skilled professional hit woman who takes on assignments in the Parisian criminal underworld from her handler Finn (Sam Worthington) and operates on a strict code of honor and a bedrock rule that no civilians are to be harmed.

During one of her such assignments which is all about killing everyone in the room, an American singer named Jenn Clark (Diana Silvers) ends up suffering a blow to the back of the head that renders her blind. And despite receiving orders from Finn to kill her off, Zee spares Jenn.

Meanwhile, Sey (Omar Sy), a honest driven police inspector, has been investigating Finn’s boss crime lord Gobert (Eric Cantona) and his ties with visiting Saudi prince Majeb Bin Faheem (Saïd Taghmaoui) in a case involving a heroin theft from Bin Faheem’s plane that puts him on a collision course with Zee and Jenn, especially when she brings the young girl under her protection.

Much like the original, the remake too is about a an assassin’s desperate attempt at redeeming herself after ruining the life of an innocent person. And about a police officer’s realization that the institution that he is working for is actually corrupt, but instead the criminal that he is targeting actually has a moral code that she abides by. And of course, it’s about violence, religion, drugs, and doves.

Without a doubt, director Woo‘s signature style and meticulously choreographed set pieces remain impressive but what both hurts and helps the film is the lack of grit.

In comparison to his earlier films, especially the Hong Kong productions, it’s all too clean and talky which defuses the desperation and tension that made the original one so pulse pounding.

Watching the remake very much feels like it is made by a man out of time as many elements like the usage of split screens, to the dialogue, to even some character types like Finn feel like they’ve stepped out of that early 90s school of action filmmaking in comparison to the recent wave of action ventures like the John Wick series, which have cited director Woo and his 1989 classic as a creative influence.

That is not to say it isn’t entertaining. There’s constant banter between the cop and the killer that is like a game of chess rather than the borderline testosterone bond of the original. Plus, the 77 year old legend still knows how to stage mayhem more inventively than a hundred other up-and-comers who probably worship his original style.

Performances wise, Nathalie Emmanuel does a good job playing the titular killer in her physically demanding role. She cuts a striking action figure and delivers the necessary killer-with-a-code empathy. Omar Sy too is an able initial adversary trying to unmask the fabled killer. Their cat-and-mouse game has levels of humor and an almost playful chemistry. Diana Silvers is likable throughout, though she is hardly given anything to do.

Sam Worthington goes all-in with an over the top turn and a totally bizarre Irish accent. Saïd Taghmaoui appears in a thankless cameo. On the whole, ‘The Killer’ is a decent enough fun action remake that pales in comparison to its iconic original.