Killshot

Rosario Dawson Week: Day 5

John Madden's Killshot went through the ninth ring of production hell before it was finally released in 07 or so, after like three years of gathering dust on the shelf. The resulting film didn't win anyone over who waited all that time with baited breath, because you can see the cuts, chops and gaps in story where it's been muddled around with, no doubt by the fuckwit studio. I still love it, flaws and all. Based on an Elmore Leonard tale (you can never go wrong with his work, it's a sombre tale of psychopaths, assassins and one hapless estranged couple (Thomas Jane & Diane Lane) caught in between. When legendary native American hit-man Arman 'The Blackbird' Degas (Mickey Rourke) botches a job for the Toronto mafia, he's forced on the run, and hides out with aimless young lunatic criminal Ritchie Nix (Joseph Gordon Levitt), who somewhat reminds him of a litte brother he lost years before. Rourke pulls off the native angle quite well, and shows vague glimpses of a humanity that was once there and has long since been buried in violence. When Jane and Lane accidentally witness him murder someone, he won't let it go, pursuing them beyond rationality or reason, even to his own end. Levitt never gets to play the wild card, and he rocks his redneck sociopath brat role with scary aplomb. Rosario Dawson has an odd appearance as Ritchie's girlfriend, an elvis fan who is seemingly a little bit challenged upstairs. Watch for a cameo from Hal Holbrook as a crusty old mobster too. You'll just have to imagine the federal agent character played by Johnny Knoxville though, because he never made it into the film and can now only be seen in ages old trailers that were a false start. Despite it's issues, I find it to be an atmospheric little pulp outing that does have the classic Leonard feel, a hard bitten, cold-hearted turn from Rourke that's one of his best characters in recent years, and a mean, unforgiving narrative set in picturesque northern Canada. Give it a shot, it deserves way more love than its received so far.

I've watched this film after getting suggested by a friend of mine. First of all, I did take a look at the cast: Mickey Rourke, Rosario Dawson, Diane Lane, Tom Jane... I thought that I couldn't go wrong even with Rourke and Dawson alone like in Sin City, but I was mistaken.

Rourke pretends to be a Native Indian, and does his job real good, but he is no Native Indian even nearly. The character of Rosario Dawson is wasted totally, you can cut it off and forget easily. Diane Lane did her part just fine. Tom Jane tried to perform like a super-man from The Punisher, but he was clearly no supposed to.

The story line is predictable extremely. Even though the whole thing starts up pretty promising, it degrades in quality quickly and leads to a dumb, really dumb end. I cannot believe that a professional hit-man can do so many mistakes one after another. And I do know for sure what a close shot of Remington 870 means.

So, we have a mediocre thriller to watch once upon a time and never return. Without Rourke and Lane it wouldn't even score 6/10 in my opinion.

Killshot should have had its day in court theatrically. It was a property that had been in the works for many years dating back to the mid-90s with the Weinsteins and nearly being made with a very intriguing pairing of De Niro in what is now Mickey Rourke's part of Blackbird and Quentin Tarantino in Joseph Gordon-Levitt's part of Richie Nix. And now, several years later, it comes to us direct to DVD (if it had a theatrical release I certainly missed it somehow), and considering its presentation as such, without any special features (out of shame or just not being able to get anyone for comment?) it's not that bad. At least, not as bad as one might expect, that it would be another total bastardization of a classic Elmore Leonard novel filled with talky tough guys and flawed good guys and one of those plots that's more about character than story. Well, at least not entirely.

Its story is simple: hired killer with a bad rep, Blackbird, is seen by a guy (Thomas Jane) and his ex (Diane Lane) at a real estate office, and he and his not-really partner/mentee low-life Richie Nix need to go after them, because, as the line goes "she's seen my face." There's witness protection program moving, and eventually the killers follow up on their targets, yada yada. The story seems fine, on paper. But there's something curious to it not being super suspenseful or engaging all the time (though there are some exceptions, which I'll get to in a moment), and I think it's due to John Madden's direction. It's slick but impersonal, without a whole lot of urgency and in a few scenes seemingly phoned-in. He's a director who's made a name with romance dramas sometimes successful (Shakespeare) and not (Corelli's Mandolin) and he doesn't feel at home directing something that should have been in more capable genre-director hands. Indeed, and I can't believe I'm writing this, the original choice, Tony Scott, would have been a more ideal candidate.

So if the script is only marginally strong, depending on when or when not it seems to take its cues (if not actually take from the source) of the Leonard novel (certain scenes like the Elvis dialog, or the joke about Nix "not like Stevie Nicks, have that Leonard feel, while the characters Lane and Jane play are barely two-dimensional), and the direction only competent, why the partial recommendation? Because, for the most part, the casting works. Mickey Rourke could have potentially sleep-walked through the part, but there is something of a good performance kicking around, and some scenes, like his last scene of dialog with Carmen is compelling and the method he employs (one can see Rourke sticking around Indian reservations for months for such a thankless film) work its stuff. Lane is also very good as the scared but strong Carmen, while Jane is... yeah, it's Thomas Jane, not so great.

But the real keeper here is Joseph Gordon-Levitt. This is an actor who has worked since he was young (I remember him as early as the Angels in the Outfield remake), and he's gotten better to the point that his name carries some weight. In Killshot we see him dig into what could be a conventional sociopath-maniac and give him life, moments that connect, like that very Leonard scene where he gives Carmen's mother a back-rub while in her house getting possible info. He, like Rourke, understand what potential there is in the material and seizes upon it. If the filmmakers were on the same page with (some) of the cast, it would be very memorable. Instead, it's something that one can feel a little bad for not making it just limited theatrically, but not that it may be forgotten in time like some other Leonard adaptations.

A mob hit-man (Mickey Rourke) teams-up with a young psycho (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) and they go after a separated couple (Diane Lane & Thomas Jane) who witnessed a botched hit. Rosario Dawson is on hand as the twerp's girlfriend.

"Killshot" (2008) is a thriller/drama by John Madden that supposedly had post-production problems, sat on a shelf, was reedited and whatever else. As such, some criticize that it doesn't flow well. Don't believe it. This is a very professionally-made film and I never got the sense that the story didn't flow, regardless of what they edited out, reedited or what have you. The story's easy to follow and makes sense.

Mickey Rourke is always a highlight even though he essentially plays the same character, which I guess most actors do. His character here is the same likable, brooding one seen in "The Wrestler" (2008) and "Passion Play" (2010) with the variation that he murders people for a living. Yes, that's a big difference and it does cause the viewer to disapprove of him but it's hard to hate him, unlike his two-bit partner. Somewhat likable or not, the Rourke character HAS to pay for his misdeeds (or should pay, at least).

Speaking of the twerp partner, Joseph Gordon-Levitt shines here as a scumbag with almost zero redeeming qualities. Something happens to him at the end and you just can't help saying "THANK YOU."

Thomas Jane is always a solid masculine protagonist as is Lane in the feminine department. The film is just as much about the potential reestablishment of their relationship as it is about the thugs trying to find them. But this is definitely a thriller/drama. You get a lot of quality drama interrupted by sudden and intense thrills.

The score's nice and atmospheric and there's a great song on the soundtrack ("Monkey" by Low).

The film runs 1 hour, 35 minutes, and was shot in Port Perry, Uxbridge and Toronto, Canada, as well as Cape Girardeau, Missouri, and Detroit.

GRADE: B.

KILLSHOT is far from being a great movie. I suppose it could be said that it isn't even a movie, but instead a DVD project as it has a rather leaden history. But though there was no theatrical release to garner public interest and little promotional material about its shelf release, it may just find an audience among word of mouth promotion. It has enough elements to keep the interest of even late at night tired viewers - and that says a lot these days. Elmore Leonard's novel has been reconstructed by Hossein Amini and John Madden has done his best to string together the various beads of the plots that comprise this story, and the result is a film peppered by some worthwhile actors who do their best to make the implausible story lines work.

Armand 'Blackbird' Degas (Mickey Rourke) is a long time hit-man, an American Indian with a past pasted together by tragedies who accepts an assignment to make a new kill. His plan is disrupted by his accidental and maladaptive association with a bona fide psychopath Richie Nix (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) and girlfriend Donna (Rosario Dawson). Nix decides to partner with Blackbird and in the process they encounter a 'couple on the rocks' - Carmen and Wayne Colson (Thomas Jane and Diane Lane) - who happen to witness an incident that puts them in danger of Nix and Blackbird's recipe for not leaving witnesses. The couple is put on Witness Protection Program but that doesn't dent the clever Blackbird from accomplishing his goals. The rest of the story is a cat and mouse chase that has some moments of real terror. And as in most of Leonard's stories, things don't turn out the way they seem to suggest.

Things are missing from this film that create holes in the story and stretch credibility. The work by the lead actors is quite good as is that of the momentary cameos by such luminaries as Hal Holbrook and Lois Smith. A great film this is not, but a film that maintains attention/tension it is and worth an evening's entertainment. Grady Harp