It is obvious from the opening credits that Killing Them Softly is more art film than crime film. Sure, the film focuses on a hitman named Jackie (Brad Pitt), who is called in to kill those responsible in a robbery. However, the film moves at quite a slow pace, which features much more talking than killing. In addition, the film takes place at the same time as the 2008 economic crisis and presidential elections, which I am sure is supposed to be a metaphor for what the characters are experience in the film. The plot of film is relatively simple – perform two hits – but it seems that much of the film is spent planning the hits than performing them. There are many scenes in the film that seem like filler, most notably the entire subplot involving an east coast hitman, play by James Gandolfini, which comes off like an extended cameo. At least it’s not as much as a cameo as Ray Liotta‘s role. The film also features a scene with a guy on a drug trip, which really seemed out of place with the rest of the film. That said, I did like Brad Pitt’s character and the film seems better when he was around. Richard Jenkins is also his usual self, in a, brief but great, role as the man who hired Jackie. The film also features a somewhat cool looking slow motion killing scene. Overall, I would say that while Killing Them Softly had it moments, but was not an overly memorable film. 6 | WATCHABLE
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