Killer Elite is a bomb
DeNiro, Owen and Statham? Wait. Let’s look at that again.
No, it’s not a misprint.
Academy award winner Robert DeNiro, Academy award nominee Clive Owen, and action star Jason Statham star in “Killer Elite”. Why, would seem to be the appropriate question.
“Killer Elite” is a true story based on the book “The Feathermen” written by Sir Ranulph Fiennes.
DeNiro (“Meet The Parents,” “Goodfellas”) plays Hunter, mentor to Statham’s (“Transporter”) ex-special ops agent Danny, who is kidnapped and held captive until Danny agrees to come out of retirement and kill three members of the British Special Air Service (SAS) who murdered the three sons of a Dubai sheik.
Owen (“Closer, Children of Men”) plays Spike, the leader of SAS. His job becomes protecting those who are being hunted and the man who stands in the way of Danny achieving his assignment.
The fact that “Killer Elite” actually happened does make it a compelling story. The fact that it’s a complete mess cheapens the fact that it actually did happen.
Statham has no business being in this film, except for when the film calls for car chasing scenes or intense fight choreography, which, by the way, is just too contemporary for the 70’s. Statham holds his own when he’s in scenes without other actors. The scenes he’s in with DeNiro and Owen look like a screen test. He looks uncomfortable and inexperienced.
DeNiro luckily only has a few scenes here and there, but that still doesn’t stop him from looking like he’s fulfilling a contract obligation. There’s no denying his appeal, or his talent, but he looks bored here and with good reason.
The same can be said for Owen, but he fares much better with the scenes he’s given. He’s a good solid actor but not even that helps.
The film thankfully does move swiftly, and it’s filmed well, but there are too many inconsistencies. The film takes place in the 70’s but only Owens porn star moustache and a few other minor things live up to that time period.
The script should have been an easy write, considering it’s a true story, but neither Matt Sherring nor Gary McKendry have the experience or the credits to make that happen.
Do yourself a favor and wait for this to come out on Netflix. It’s not worth the price of the theater ticket.
