The Killer Elite opens 9/23. Buy tickets now on Fandango.com.
Find out more about The Killer Elite at killerelite.com
I went to see “The Killer Elite” last week at a special press screening and I have to say I was blown away. I’m not normally one for assassin vs. assassin movies, but “The Killer Elite” is more than just your typical violence for the sake of violence film – it’s actually a real interesting story about trained assassins, government corruption and the role the West has played in the Middle East. Entirely relevant for the current culture and political times today.
Both myself and Lisa, who came along, walked out after seeing it surprised at how much we really enjoyed the film because, at the end of the day, it told a compelling, redemptive story. Added bonus? Yvonne Strahovski (Sarah Walker from Chuck) plays the romantic lead.
Synopsis:
“Based on a shocking true story, Killer Elite pits two of the world’s most elite operatives – Danny, an ex-special ops agent (Jason Statham) and Hunter, his longtime mentor (Robert De Niro) – against the cunning leader of a secret military society (Clive Owen). Covering the globe from Australia to Paris, London and the Middle East, Danny and Hunter are plunged into a highly dangerous game of cat and mouse — where the predators become the prey.”
Non-Spoilery Verdict:
Come for the explosions, car chases, stellar cast and leave with a compelling story.
Jason Statham does what he does best in this role: he plays the hard on the outside, teddy bear on the inside lead. As Danny he gets to really play with the tortured soul who is pulled back into the assasian business because of his friend. Robert DeNiro gets to play an excellent role as a foil for Jason’s character adding to every scene he’s in without having to outshine the rest of the cast. Yvonne gets to play a good Australian country girl, and even though her role is smaller than the male leads, she really lights up the screen at every turn. I was pleasantly surprised that her character wasn’t as flat as I had anticipated she might be in this very male genre film.
Clive Owen is masterful and gripping in his role. Of the three male leads I really believed his character most of all.
At the beginning the movie did feel more like an independent film (long, non-actiony type shots), but the action picked up and left me interested through out. There were a couple unexpected turns that the movie made that I wasn’t expecting and the overall message was redemption is possible and who you were does not have to define who you become.
Downsides to the movie (for me) was it was rated R for language (brief nudity) and violence (though the violence wasn’t as bad as I thought it may be).
This is a really great movie based on a non-fiction book The Feather Men and I recommend you go see it for yourself.
