I love anthologies, I love the noir genre, and I love horror. Therefore, when I saw that the anthology film “The Killers” was going to be presented in Fantasia 2024, I was excited to see it. I knew very little of the directors Kim Jong-kwan, Roh Deok, Chang Hang-jun and Lee Myung-Se, who combined their talents in this film. After seeing it, you can be sure that I will be seeking their other works too.
I will do my best to talk about the stories without going into a lot of details nor spoilers.
In the first story “Metamorphosis”, we see a man running for his life, barely making it alive into a very private bar. Being very confused at first, the man starts to get friendly with the bartender, a very mysterious and charismatic lady that does not seem scared at all by him, even when he has a knife coming out from his back.
I thought this was going to be the “base” story, the one that connects the rest, and that would be playing in segments between the rest of the stories. While it sets the mood just right for the rest of the film, it is isolated from the others.
It ends where I think something bigger might be barely starting… I wonder if we will ever get a full feature of this story.
I really hope so.
The second tale “Contractors” starts with a lady trying to arrange for a contract kill. She is a customer that knows what she wants, and how she wants it done. Price is not a problem. The problem is that, unfortunately, she might not be getting the service she deserves, as the contractor, looking to make the most profit possible, starts to cut corners with the order, and this will start a chain reaction of problems.
There are some laughs to be had with this tale, but the best punch is saved for last. I am not spoiling anything, I am just encouraging you to enjoy the trip and go all the way to the end.
The next story, “Everyone Is Waiting for the Man,” was my favorite. Here we see an undercover cop going into a modest restaurant for several nights, trying to get a chance to catch a very ruthless killer. One that no one knows how he looks like. The problem is that this same night, a couple of gangsters decided to go for some drinks in this same spot, and as you might guess, they are also trying to get to the killer.
Very solid story from beginning to the end. Perfection! Chef kiss!
The last story “Diaspora City” has two assassins coming into a restaurant in the lowest parts of town, with the intentions of killing a man that comes to dine there everyday at 6 PM. The cafe is owned and operated by 3 very particular characters that will try their best to get out of this trouble alive.
This story felt like a mess for me. At times reminded me of those independent films in the 90’s, you know the type: filmed in black or white, a lot of random scenes, dialogues that seemed to be ad-lib, characters appearing out of nowhere to recite dialogues that have nothing to do with the story, and disappearing just as quick. This is followed by several scenes that make no sense “just because” and an ending that leaves you thinking… “Really? This is how you end it?”
Way too bonkers and weird for me.
And I saw this segment 3 times, just to see if I was missing something. I gave it more than a fair chance.
The theme in this collection of stories has to do with Edward Hopper’s painting “Nighthawks”, in some stories you will just see the painting in the room. In Others you will see it being represented or reenacted in someway. The title of the movie could be done as an homage, since it is said that Hopper’s painting was inspired by the short story “The Killers” by Ernest Hemingway.
With anthology films, you can get a mixed bag. Some stories will be better than others, some will seem out of place, but if you are lucky, all of them could be entertaining. I will say that this film is better than a lot I have seen recently. Sadly, it ended for me on a sour note.
Still, I think it’s very worth a watch.
The film just played in fantasia 2024 on August 3rd,
This is the last of my reviews for this year.
I hope you enjoyed all the reviews I posted,
and fingers crossed, I’ll be back again next year.
