The Killer’s Gameis an exciting new action film, yet for all its star quality and slick set pieces, it couldn’t deliver on what had seemed it’s most intriguing on-screen combination. The movie stars Dave Bautista as a terminally ill assassin named Joe Flood, whose desperate plan backfires and places his ex-girlfriend in the crosshairs of his dangerous world.The film has an excellent balance of comedy and actionthat manifests in some truly memorable action set pieces throughout the story. AlthoughThe Killer’s Gamewasn’t a box office success, the film still has plenty of impressive moments that make it worth a watch.
But in several respects,The Killer’s Gamedoesn’t capitalize on the many possibilities of the genre - the story is fairly linear, there aren’t many twists and turns, and Bautista’s character often feels like a caricature of himself. Despite an excellent cast and plenty of great choreography,the film ultimately falls flat. However, there was one moment in the film that I was particularly looking forward to after noticing a small detail inThe Killer’s Game’s cast list- but it didn’t quite capitalize on that either.
The Killer’s Game Didn’t Let Dave Bautista & Pom Klementieff Fight
The Movie Passes On Their Final Showdown
The Killer’s Gamestars both Dave Bautista and Pom Klementieff,two actors whose Hollywood careers began in the same place: the MCU’sGuardians of the Galaxytrilogy. Their characters, Drax and Mantis respectively, were among the highlights of James Gunn’s marvel films, bringing some much-needed humor and lightness to a series that often dealt with some surprisingly mature themes. Their budding friendship was a core element of the final movie, and while not every member of the Guardians made it out of the trilogy in one piece, they always stuck together.
The Killer’s Game Soundtrack Guide: Every Song & When They Play
The Killer’s Game includes a great soundtrack with music from Dolly Parton, James Brown, and more. Here’s every song and when they play in the movie.
Given this history, a fight scene between Bautista and Kelementieff’s characters was definitely on my bingo card, but their characters never got the showdown that I was hoping for. Even inThe Killer’s Game’s ending, which seemed to be building towards a conflict between the pair, all was resolved without Bautista and Klementieff exchanging blows. This fight could have been a fun nod towards the actors’ shared history, bringing them back together on opposite sides of the conflict. However, the story’s resolution ended up feeling like a wasted opportunity.
Dave Bautista & Pom Klementieff’s Marvel History Would’ve Made A Fight Great
The Actors Played Two Key Characters In The Marvel Cinematic Universe
InGuardians of the Galaxy, Bautista’s and Klementieff’s characters always fought on the same side.They were teammates from the very beginning, brought together by their shared conflict with Peter Quill’s cosmic father Ego. The pair even fought side-by-side against Thanos during the events ofAvengers: Infinity War, sacrificing themselves for the good of the universe. I’m so used to seeing these two actors on the same side, it would have been fascinating to see how their chemistry changes when they are fighting each other.
The actors’ work in theGuardians of the Galaxymovies is among their best projects to date, but since then,they have both starred in some much darker and more action-packed films. Bautista starred in M. Night Shyamalan’sKnock at the Cabin, while Klementieff had a minor role inMission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One. Their careers have taken huge turns in recent years, and I would have loved to see this reflected in thecritically divisiveThe Killer’sGame.
The Killer’s Game Would’ve Benefitted From A Dave Bautista & Pom Klementieff Fight
From a narrative perspective, I’m confident thata fight between Bautista and Klementieff would have elevatedThe Killer’s Gameand made the story even more exciting. It’s something that the movie was clearly building towards, as the story can’t resolve until their characters finally face each other. However, the way thatThe Killer’s Gamepulls their journeys to a close without too much conflict was frankly disappointing, and Klementieff’s character suffers an underwhelming fate as a result. It would have been much more interesting if Joe Flood had been more active in bringing her down.
This isn’t either actor’s first action movie, and they’re both getting more and more familiar with putting their combat skills to screen.
For much ofThe Killer’s Game, Klementieff’s character talks about wanting to be the one to kill Bautista’s protagonist - this had me convinced that their showdown was inevitable. It’s an unusual decision to build so clearly towards a fight that never happens, particularly when that fight has so much potential given the actors involved. This isn’t either actor’s first action movie, and they’re both getting more and more familiar with putting their combat skills to screen. This could have been a great way of ending the film, as the two characters certainly would’ve been a strong match for one another.
The Killer’s Game
Cast
A hitman named Joe is diagnosed with a terminal illness and decides to end his life on his own terms by placing a hit on himself. When he learns the diagnosis was a mistake, he must evade the world’s deadliest assassins who are now targeting him. The action-packed narrative follows Joe as he fights for survival while confronting his past decisions and the relentless killers pursuing him.
