Cinema, Stick It In Your Queue

Cult Flick: Kiler

Posted by: detourmag on April 14, 2008 at 12:00 pm

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Kiler (Juliusz Machulski, 1997, Poland)

Poor Jurek Kiler (Cezary Pazura). He was in the wrong place at the wrong time with the wrong gun in the trunk of his taxi. Now he’s staring down the barrel of a gun, son of a gun, accused of being “Killer,” the toughest assassin in Poland. He’s been nabbed by Inspector Fish (Jerzy Stuhr), a relentless, if slightly bumbling investigator. Fish is the hero of the department for all of a day before one of Killer’s employers, the hirsute gangster Siara (Janusz Rewinski), busts him out of custody and hires him for a few new hits.

Everyone, it seems, has someone they want murdered. Even the local greengrocer would like her husband laid to rest. Siara has his sights on his business partner, Lipsky (Jan Englert), and snooty investigative reporter Ewa (Malgorzata Kozuchowska). Like Inspector Fish, Ewa won’t hear that Kiler is anyone other than “Killer” but, luckily for viewers, there’s no twist at the end to reveal that the hapless Kiler is anything but what he claims to be.

This isn’t The Usual Suspects: what could be a typical mistaken identity flick is elevated thanks to a clever self-reflexive script by Piotr Weresniak that has cab driver Kiler making a stop at the video store to see how Bruce Willis, Jean Reno, and Robert De Niro handle a gun. Completing his hitman persona, Kiler dons a suit and skinny black tie to look like a refugee from Reservoir Dogs or A Better Tomorrow II. Kiler also benefits from an intricate plot that initially recalls Quentin Tarantino’s Jackie Brown but without the obsequious stylistic embellishments and with far greater viewer satisfaction.

Director Juliusz Machulski has an outstanding track record, having helmed classics like Sexmission and King Size. Owing to the success of Kiler, Machulski followed the film with an obligatory sequel which tries and almost lives up to the fun of the original. — Mike White

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[tags]Kiler, Juliusz Machulski, The Usual Suspects, Quentin Tarantino, Reservoir Dogs[/tags]

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