Before becoming a director, Davis Leitch worked in Hollywood for years as a stuntman and became the long-time stuntman for actor Brad Pitt. Pitt and Leitch worked together on numerous films, starting their work relationship with Fincher's Fight Club. Over the past decade, Leitch has become a promising director in the action genre, starting as co-director (he was uncredited) of the first John Wick film, which has since become The Action Movie Franchise of the Decade. Leitch then went solo to helm Atomic Blonde, 2, and Fast and Furious presents: Hobbs and Shaw. Now, Leitch and Pitt reunite for the film Bullet Train, an adaptation of the book of the same name by Kotaro Isaka.
Pitt shows off his leading man personality once again as the character Ladybug. A hitman for hire who has found a new belief in pacifism and whose self-confidence has gone way down over the years from jobs going off the rails, making himself believe that he has bad luck. His boss (Sandra Bullock) gives him a simple mission as his first job back. His job is to board a Bullet Train traveling from Tokyo to Kyoto, snatch a briefcase that contains millions of dollars, and get off at the first stop. Simple, right? Well, it turns out to be not that simple, as Ladybug realizes that he is not the only assassin on this train, and they are all connected to a ruthless Russian mobster known to them as The White Death (Michael Shannon).
The assassin's on this train include Lemon and Tangerine (Brian Tyree Henry and Aaron Taylor Johnson), twin brothers hired to bring the White Death's son (Logan Lerman) back to him, along with the briefcase. The Prince (Joey King) is a young girl on a mission to kill The White Death. Kimura (Andrew Koji) is a father trying to find the person responsible for the attempted murder of his son, along with his father The Elder (Hiroyuki Sanada), an aging samurai who suffered at the hands of The White Death. The Wolf (Bad Bunny), a member of the Mexican Cartel who seeks vengeance for the murder of his wife, and The Hornet (Zazie Beetz), an assassin who uses the venom from a rare snake on her targets.
Bullet Train excellences with the visual presentation, unlike the fair share of modern-day action films. The cinematography is very colorful and vibrant. Lots of care into the framing of each shot. One scene, in particular, is shot through the POV of an object, and it's beautifully executed. Leitch brings his history of stunt work into the film by providing entertaining action scenes that never feel cheap or manipulated. Every punch and kick feels real. The camera work also helps with the action, making it feel electric. Action films of modern times don't have anymore. They rely on the workings of shaky cam and editing tricks to hide the imperfections with the action but hiding this only makes the film worse because this mashup makes the film look messy and unprofessional. The action makes each scene feel fun and keeps the audience. The production design is creative as well. Most films that take place in one setting suffer from having the locations feel dull, but Bullet Train keeps it exciting by having several different locations all packed into one, and each one feels unique with its lighting
The performances are superb compared to most in the action genre. Brad Pitt isn't doing much that he hasn't already done in the last two decades, but his leading man charisma still leaves the audience loving him. Aaron Taylor Johnson and Brian Tyree Henry's chemistry is so strong that it's one of the most entertaining dynamic duos in recent memory.
The film fails with its messy screenplay. The film resembles a hodgepodge of every Guy Ritchie and Quentin Tarantino film, to the point that it feels like a ripoff. The problem doesn't come from the notion that a screenwriter would want to make a film that pays homage to his favorite writers/directors. Tarantino built his entire career by copying the style of other filmmakers and writers. The problem with this is that it lacks the originality of those films and feels like it's giving us the best moments of those movies without offering anything new and this style done wrong causes major pacing problems, making a two-hour film feel way longer than it should. The editing feels jumbled, committing the ultimate sin of modern movies: spelling everything out for the audience. It's like the director thinks the audience is too dumb to remember something that happened earlier, so his way of working around it is to keep showing us those same moments until it becomes repetitive. The characters aren't developed properly, so at the end of the day, nothing feels earned. While the characters are fun to watch and keep your interest throughout the runtime, the emotions aren't there for them to hit. When bad things happen to them, it never fully gives brings out the intended emotions that the audience is supposed to feel.
Bullet Train is a technical achievement spoiled by its messy storytelling. A fun movie to see in theaters but one that isn't worth a revisit at home.
6/10.
Pitt shows off his leading man personality once again as the character Ladybug. A hitman for hire who has found a new belief in pacifism and whose self-confidence has gone way down over the years from jobs going off the rails, making himself believe that he has bad luck. His boss (Sandra Bullock) gives him a simple mission as his first job back. His job is to board a Bullet Train traveling from Tokyo to Kyoto, snatch a briefcase that contains millions of dollars, and get off at the first stop. Simple, right? Well, it turns out to be not that simple, as Ladybug realizes that he is not the only assassin on this train, and they are all connected to a ruthless Russian mobster known to them as The White Death (Michael Shannon).
The assassin's on this train include Lemon and Tangerine (Brian Tyree Henry and Aaron Taylor Johnson), twin brothers hired to bring the White Death's son (Logan Lerman) back to him, along with the briefcase. The Prince (Joey King) is a young girl on a mission to kill The White Death. Kimura (Andrew Koji) is a father trying to find the person responsible for the attempted murder of his son, along with his father The Elder (Hiroyuki Sanada), an aging samurai who suffered at the hands of The White Death. The Wolf (Bad Bunny), a member of the Mexican Cartel who seeks vengeance for the murder of his wife, and The Hornet (Zazie Beetz), an assassin who uses the venom from a rare snake on her targets.
Bullet Train excellences with the visual presentation, unlike the fair share of modern-day action films. The cinematography is very colorful and vibrant. Lots of care into the framing of each shot. One scene, in particular, is shot through the POV of an object, and it's beautifully executed. Leitch brings his history of stunt work into the film by providing entertaining action scenes that never feel cheap or manipulated. Every punch and kick feels real. The camera work also helps with the action, making it feel electric. Action films of modern times don't have anymore. They rely on the workings of shaky cam and editing tricks to hide the imperfections with the action but hiding this only makes the film worse because this mashup makes the film look messy and unprofessional. The action makes each scene feel fun and keeps the audience. The production design is creative as well. Most films that take place in one setting suffer from having the locations feel dull, but Bullet Train keeps it exciting by having several different locations all packed into one, and each one feels unique with its lighting
The performances are superb compared to most in the action genre. Brad Pitt isn't doing much that he hasn't already done in the last two decades, but his leading man charisma still leaves the audience loving him. Aaron Taylor Johnson and Brian Tyree Henry's chemistry is so strong that it's one of the most entertaining dynamic duos in recent memory.
The film fails with its messy screenplay. The film resembles a hodgepodge of every Guy Ritchie and Quentin Tarantino film, to the point that it feels like a ripoff. The problem doesn't come from the notion that a screenwriter would want to make a film that pays homage to his favorite writers/directors. Tarantino built his entire career by copying the style of other filmmakers and writers. The problem with this is that it lacks the originality of those films and feels like it's giving us the best moments of those movies without offering anything new and this style done wrong causes major pacing problems, making a two-hour film feel way longer than it should. The editing feels jumbled, committing the ultimate sin of modern movies: spelling everything out for the audience. It's like the director thinks the audience is too dumb to remember something that happened earlier, so his way of working around it is to keep showing us those same moments until it becomes repetitive. The characters aren't developed properly, so at the end of the day, nothing feels earned. While the characters are fun to watch and keep your interest throughout the runtime, the emotions aren't there for them to hit. When bad things happen to them, it never fully gives brings out the intended emotions that the audience is supposed to feel.
Bullet Train is a technical achievement spoiled by its messy storytelling. A fun movie to see in theaters but one that isn't worth a revisit at home.
6/10.