Bullet Train

 This review may contain spoilers!

 

Bullet Train is an adaptation of the novel by Kôtarô Isako, and is the hilarious and unfortunate story of what happens when a number of eccentric assassins and mercenaries board the same bullet train with intersecting objectives. The film really pushes the envelope on what you might expect and how it makes you have fun while watching. Every character in this is so interesting and distinctly different from one another. I love all the branching storylines and how one simple story thread for Ladybug turns into the chaos we have by the end of the film. This is a feature that earns its violence, the story escalates really well and is made to grow more and more unpredictable. Seeing Ladybug be this non-violent thief for hire who is practising the mantras of his therapist is such a funny and unexpected protagonist. You pair this role with an assassin who learned how to read people from watching Thomas the Tank Engine and a young adolescent criminal mastermind and this whole thing becomes a really exciting tangle of creative storytelling. Seeing the film slowly pull back and reveal connections, mysterious pasts and the answer of why all these characters are together on this train makes for one extremely satisfying ride.

This is an extremely satisfying film to watch visually too. The bullet train never feels like a confining setting, in fact the way each carriage is lit a little differently and captured a different way lends a great style to this piece. The action flows so smoothly and the camera is always in motion lending a very fluid quality; yet it is so strikingly still for the big emotional moments that are there to tug on your heart strings. Almost all of the visual effects look pretty good, the backdrops beyond the train make for great vistas and I liked the carnage within the train when it derails (though the exterior of this really needed a little work). The score throughout is frenetic and fun, in the extremely unpredictable nature of this movie so major credit to Dominic Lewis. It also flaunts one of my favourite film soundtracks for the year with a variety of numbers that either lends to the action or comedy and with a host of Japanese talent all the way through. Plus it uses a Japanese cover of 'Holdin' Out for A Hero' in the big final act battle, that's a move that never goes bad.

 

Brad Pitt, who played Ladybug, is hysterical as this almost non-violent thief protagonist; the way Pitt stumbles through this story with a constantly confused air is a lot of fun. Joey King, who played Prince, has found one of the best roles of her career in this antagonist; watching King decieve and concoct devious schemes made for a fascinating performance. Hiroyuki Sanada, who played The Elder, is impressive as this strict martial patriarch of his family; the approach Sanada has towards portraying a wise man with a long game approach towards revenge is very well done. Michael Shannon, who played White Death, hams it up a little as this crime boss antagonist but this is exactly what the film needs; Shannon portraying this sinister villain who revels in his own intellect and power is a great time. Sandra Bullock, who played Maria, is one of the more grounded roles in the film and works to provide the protagonist and audience with a bit of focus; Bullock portraying this exasperated role who feels like a babysitter as much as a handler generates some nice dry wit. Zazie Beetz, who played The Hornet, is an unexpected role who is quite fun to watch; Beetz has a very provocative way of delivering dialogue that makes her character quite comedic. Channing Tatum, who played Train Passenger, was a comedic surprise cameo that I didn't expect and really loved; Tatum playing this odd individual who is down to clown with these characters who bump into him makes for a very funny appearance.

However, the best performance came from Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Brian Tyree Henry, who played Tangerine and Lemon respectively. This on-screen assassin brother duo was an incredible display of acting chemistry, it was a real moment of watching a scene always get better because Henry and Taylor-Johnson played off one another so seamlessly. This performance was never one trying to eclipse the other, they blended well together. I was so convinced that Henry and Taylor-Johnson were brothers in the way they bickered with one another or showed trust in one another. They were a temperamental pair; Henry's role being more eccentric while Taylor-Johnson was the more explosive professional. The best comedy in this film came from how outlandish the dialogue and actions this duo partook in actually was. They had a real familial bond with one another, you saw the trust and respect they had for one another. Both performers had a major display of grief and loss in relation to the other which I very much felt. You don't get a lot of films where people are paired up like this and they work together equally to make a partnership that steals the show.

This film is non-stop in approach and I love the creativity and the humour at work here. However, the film has a unique story structure that means we may abandon a leading character's storyline for long periods of time, meaning we can be without a major role for a big section of the film. This means that when they do eventually get the spotlight again it can take a minute for them to slot nicely back into the narrative. I also felt the final act really escalates things a bit too far at times; moments like the train crashing, the ways in the which some plot twists continued to keep developing and some of the humour really pushed the envelope further than it needed.

Andrew Koji, who played Kimura, is quite a flat role to watch onscreen; Koji's role often seems deflated which doesn't make him an interesting role to watch. Bad Bunny, who played Wolf, is in this film to swagger around and look tough; this is a performer who looks more like he is posing in his scenes but never like he's actually playing a character. Logan Lerman, who played The Son, is a very two-dimensional performance that comes across as very disinterested; Lerman's mumbled dialogue is far and away from his better work.

From start to finish this film is absolutely wild; brilliant fun but wild. I would give Bullet Train an 8/10.