All You Need is Kill

So after some self-doubt about my own endurance about watching a sadistic violent film in cinemas, I braved myself to watch the new Indonesian film Killers, no, it's not that Kutcher/Heigl-Knight and Day wannabe film. This one is the first ever joint production between Japan and Indonesia starring Japanese and Indonesian actors and also filmed in both Tokyo and Jakarta. Directed by The Mo Brothers of Rumah Dara/Macabre fame and produced by the team behind The Raid. The film is one of the two Indonesian films to premiere at Sundance this year, and the other one being The Raid 2. It also debuted to positive reviews too. Good stuff for Indonesian film yes?

The story is divided into two settings, Tokyo and Japan. In Tokyo, we're told about the life and story of Nomura, a disturbed man with serial killing routine who uploads his killings to the Internet. Then, in Indonesia, a twisted desperate reporter Bayu got inspired to do the same while going on a revenge mission against a corrupt man who had destroyed his career and life.

What makes Killers good is its decision to hold nothing back to show its violence and sadism. The killings are really creative (I don't have any killing intention), and skillfully shot. I still haven't seen Rumah Dara, but it's next on my watchlist. Oka Antara and Kazuki Kitamura are great in their respective roles as Bayu and Nomura. Oka Antara's acting is more physical and Kitamura's is more psychological. That's really fun to observe. I really liked Nomura's dark background with his sister and intention and the vigilante story with Bayu is also interesting. The supporting cast are good too. My favorites are Ellie, Bayu's daughter played incredibly by the child actor and the Japanese Rin Takanashi as Hisae. There are also some great action scenes that are already worth your ticket. However the film kinda jumped the shark when [spoiler alert] Nomura visited Indonesia. Then the third act recalls the climactic 'lie like I lied' scene in The Dark Knight. Also the bad green screen in the third act made it hard not to laugh. The long running time might also be a turn off, but otherwise I couldn't see how they could cut it down and still display the complicated story. However, the film is rightfully bloody and violent and the quiet build in the story is more the virtue. The story keeps you in the theater because you'd already know what to expect. For an Indonesian film, this film is definitely another addition in the above average category. Next stop: The Raid 2, also co-starring Killers lead actors, Oka Antara and Kazuki Kitamura. Killers: rated 3.5/4

fun fact: I understand roughly the Japanese dialogues without seeing the subtitles. YEAH. and god, please, Japanese people please learn proper English pronunciation.