This piece was written during the 2023 WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. Without the labour of the writers and actors currently on strike, the movie being covered here wouldn't exist.
The word “perfectionist” is thrown around a lot but it genuinely applies to David Fincher. Over the course of his career he has made a name for himself with his ultra-dark, methodically planned stories, and his latest offering is no different.
Walker's script is darkly comic, underpinning the film's nastiness with a dry sense of humour accentuated by a soundtrack populated by The Smiths. The score by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross often sounds like a headache inside the lead characters mind, perfectly putting us into the mind set of someone who's mission is to end lives.
The chapter headings, and the film's overall sterile nature won't be to all tastes, as Fincher films invariably aren't, but after the awards courting nature of Mank this feels like vintage Fincher, lean, mean and with enough grisly moments to make you think that the auteur hasn't lost his touch.
The film's arch narration and its cold, unfeeling portrayal of murder for money may make it a chore for some. But Netflix ought to provide the perfect home for this action thriller that doesn't pretend to be anything more than a sleek, nasty little film. It's pure Fincher on all fronts, and that's reason to rejoice.
The Killer releases on Netflix on November 10th
