Killing Gunther

It's what you can call a marmite movie, you either love it or hate it. Best to watch with some friends, having some nibbles and beers. I felt entertained and had a good time, never expected it to be an Oscar contestant

I love assassin movies. The best thing I can say about this movie is I did watch the whole thing without shutting it off.

95% of the movie follows a documentary crew who is hired to follow a team of assassins. They are trying to kill the worlds greatest hit-man, a guy named Gunther (Played by Arnold.) One or two of the assassins are amusing but most of the jokes fall flat and the movies ends up being pretty tedious as a result. I honestly wanted to like it but the writing is pretty bad, the action is laughable (but not in a good way) and what could be an interesting premise is wasted.

The best part of the movie is Arnold Schwarzenegger. He is the only actor in the movie that feels like a real actor, which is crazy because he's know more for his action abilities than his acting abilities. Sadly, Arnie is only in about 5% of the movie and the rest of the time viewers are stuck with a mediocre cast. At the very least I give Arnold credit for making the most of his role. (Although I bet he only was on set for a week.) Even though this is a comedy movie and not a true story I was disappointed by the lack of internal consistency. Basically Gunther (Arnie's character)is capable of performing assassinations that defy all logic and explanation. I would have rather him been a very good assassin who is human, rather than a super-powered baddie who can apparently bend the laws of time and space.

I acknowledge that there was a decent idea here. Unfortunately it didn't work out and I'm surprised Arnold agreed to appear in this movie. I'm guessing most of the budget was spent on his salary, otherwise his presence makes no sense to me.

Sadly, I cannot recommend this movie, unless you are a huge Schwarzenegger fan and you love the idea of an assassin comedy (and you smoke enough pot that you are able to suspend disbelief in the face of the ridiculous and are able to laugh at jokes that aren't really funny.) Sober viewers should probably skip this one.

My advice: if you are about to see this, start with low expectations and don't expect too many scenes with Arnold. All scenes with him are just hilarious and will reward you if you're an Arnie-fan.

This movie definitely does not try to take itself serious. It is a nicely shot comedy, with action and familiar faces.

And has a great ending accompanied with even greater ending credits.

Wait and listen to the ending credits songs and you will be positively surprised.

8/10 for the effort and the truly funny moments with Arnold.

Is it utterly ridiculous? Absolutely. But there were plenty of laugh out loud moments, and that's the most important thing in a comedy, no?

Give it 15 minutes, if you haven't laughed by then it's not for you...but I have a feeling you'll be laughing.

For a film that has Arnie's face at the centre occupying the most space in the poster, and has his name billed as top-cast, he's barely there. He plays Gunther, who's adjudged the greatest hit-man in the world. A cluster of tier-2 hit men (and hitwomen) led by Blake (Taran Killam, who also wrote and directed the movie) target Gunther for various reasons - some merely professional, while some purely personal.

'Killing Gunther' must have actually been the by-product of an unproduced SNL skit (as it certainly carries the vibe of one) - yes, there are indeed a few unadulterated laughs prompted by the ensemble, but the rest of the movie doesn't register (especially the action set-pieces). Even the jokes get increasingly absurd as the movie progresses and the viewer doesn't feel like backing the interests of any of the characters. In fact, we'd rather root for the rather mysterious Gunther than the buffoons we see on screen for a good 70 minutes straight.

The visual effects are tacky (yeah it's a DTV movie) and the holes in the script way too huge (even if you decide to turn your brains off and treat it all like the BS it really is). Arnie's 'cameo' comes in a lot later than expected, and when he finally makes his entry, there isn't much left to salvage as the material in hand is unfortunately too trashy.

The performances are supposed to look outlandish and hence, they are. No one really stands out in their portrayals and the chemistry amongst the group is lacking. When the supposedly clumsy cyber-nerd is the most likable character in a movie about 'professional assassins', it doesn't help elevate things even to the slightest extent. Taran Killam wants this movie to look like the parody of parodies but his attempt kicks the bucket in no time. 'Red' is a better film in this genre.

Verdict: Give this one a miss, especially if you're still an Arnie fan!