David Fincher is one of the best American directors making films today. He has a knack for giving audiences characters and stories that are a bit out of the ordinary but effective in keeping viewers interested in what is going on. With The Killer, he asks for a little extra patience from audiences. If they indeed have a little patience they will be rewarded by a great character study of a hitman in trouble.

Michael Fassbender plays a hitman who is very patient, methodical, and precise. His narration of his process is very fascinating.  He explains what it takes to do this job and be very effective in doing so. Until he Misses his target and then finds out how vulnerable he truly is. How he responds to this missed target and his business partners’ response is what will determine if he is really who he thinks he is in mind, body, and spirit. 

Fincher isn’t one for humor in his films but he decides to do a little winking at the camera regarding some of the details involving the hitman’s identities and aliases.  Fans of popular sitcoms from the ’60s, ’70s, and ’80s will recognize some of the names on passports, airline tickets, and credit cards. Names such as Felix Unger & Oscar Madison- The Odd Couple, Archie Bunker- All in the Family, Lou Grant, George Jefferson- The Jeffersons, Sam Malone- Cheers, Reubin Kincaid- The Partridge Family,   Robert Hartley-The Bob Newhart Show. This broke up the tension from the serious nature of the film and its character’s mission.

Another story aspect of the movie is the chapter’s names and how the film was divided into easy-to-digest chunks. Titles like The Client, The Expert, The Hideout, and The Target all refer to various points in the movie that are key to how this character of the Killer reacts to what he has to do. He is put into a difficult situation once he misses his target but he handles it in a way that is on par for him in how he goes about doing things. The titles are very informative in how this film unfolds.

A big part of a movie sometimes is the score or the songs a director chooses to use in key moments of a film. In the case of Fincher, he has frequent collaborators Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross doing the score once again this time out. It’s full of interesting sounds and tension-filled music. Add in some songs from The Smiths, a 1980s Manchester United Kingdom-based rock band, sprinkled in and this movie has a strange all-around sound to it.

The Killer is a character study of a man who is seeking revenge for an injustice he feels is happening to him. Fassbender portrays this man in a way I haven’t seen him play a character before. He narrates his story but it’s how he goes about his everyday life that is the most fascinating part of this film. The minutiae of his everyday life are handled with great precision and a malicious nature. I’ve never seen a character like this before. Fassbender embraces all the little things that make this character who he is. He uses his eyes to emote quite a bit but the quietness of his character and performance that makes him so effective. This is an exercise in terrific acting by Fassbender. They both have a method to their madness.

The Killer is one of the most thoroughly thought-out stories and characters I’ve seen in a while. Every little detail means something. From copying key fobs to careful shakeout watching a subject. Fincher creates a very methodical and meticulous way for this character to think and act. Fassbender uses what he has been given by the script and director to create one of the best characters of his career. The narration allows us to see into his thoughts and they are very fascinating.  The winks to the past and chapters create informative ways that the audience can understand the story better. This is a fun character study that allows viewers to choose whose right in this situation the employer or the employee. This is another winner for both Fincher and Fassbender with a little of Tilda Swinton thrown in for good measure.

3 ½ stars

Dan Skip Allen