Review: Killing Them Softly

Andrew Dominik previous directorial effort was ‘The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford’ while the film was overly long, it was a very impressive piece of film. Will his recent effort do the same? Check it out below.

Synopsis:
Three dumb guys who think they're smart rob a Mob protected card game, causing the local criminal economy to collapse. Brad Pitt plays the enforcer hired to track them down and restore order. Killing Them Softly also features Richard Jenkins, James Gandolfini, Ray Liotta, Scoot McNairy, Ben Mendelsohn, and Vincent Curatola. Max Casella, Trevor Long, Slaine and Sam Shepard also make appearances. -- (C) Weinstein

Story:
The movie was adapted from the novel ‘Cogan’s Trade’ by George Higgins. The film follows Jackie Cogan, an assassin that is hired to kill three dumb f*cks who robbed a card game that is protected by the mob. The story was brilliantly executed and it never held back on telling what it wants to tell, it is basically straight to the point. The film was only 93 minutes long yet it was able to tell a lot and everything served as an ingredient to the cooking of an amazing story.

Acting:
Everybody in this movie exhibited great performances especially Ben Mendelsohn, Scoot McNairy, Richard Jenkins, James Gandolfini and Brad Pitt. Mendelsohn played a robber that is scared shitless and he really showcased being scared, he was good. Next is McNairy, a robber who basically just wants to have a good life and he really appeared desperate. Jenkins was good as the middleman, he played this awkwardly and it just fits perfectly. Gandolfini played a hitman who happens to have a sad life and you can really see him being depressed at his life and his time as a hitman is long gone. Lastly is Brad Pitt who plays Jackie Cogan the assassin, he played this role with such menace that even at the presence of him you will sh*t your pants.

Action/ Violence:
This film is downright violent, it showed a slo-mo death scene, a man getting hit by a vehicle and many more. This was very graphic and bloody violent and at some point I cringed and got shock at some of them (and that rarely happens to me).

Cinematography:
It was just average but when it comes to the violent scenes, it turns to a 100. The cinematography was able to show how violent the scenes are and my favorite part of this film’s cinematography is the slo-mo death scene, firstly, like I said it was brutal and bloody, second is every shot was amazing, and lastly, it helped the scene to be more realistic.

Direction:
I loved ‘The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford’ and it honestly is one of my favorite biopics, now Andrew Dominik made Killing Them Softly, and honestly this became one of my favorite adaptations, in just a short amount of time, Dominik was able to tell a lot and t never felt short. Now, I’m craving for more Andrew Dominik film, please make some more hehe.

Overall:
‘Killing Them Softly’ is one amazing piece of film with a stellar performance from the cast. Brad Pitt has never been menacing as ever before, he just electrifies the screen every time he’s present. This is one of my favourite films of the year or even one of my favorites ever. I give this a 5/5.