Bullet Train Review: Stylish Mad Caper Action Film

BULLET TRAIN

Producers: David Leitch, Antoine Fuqua and Kelly McCormick

Director: David Leitch

Cast: Brad Pitt, Aaron-Taylor Johnson, Joey King, Michael Shannon, Brian Tyree Henry and Sandra Bullock, Bad Bunny, Channing Tatum and Ryan Gosling,

Rating:

By Jyothi  Venkatesh

Essentially, the film Bullet Train based on a book by Kotaro Isaka, is about five assassins who find themselves on a fast moving bullet train from Tokyo to Morioka with only a few stops in between. They discover their missions are not unrelated to each other. The riveting fast paced film revolves around a deadly assassin Ladybug (Brad Pitt) who boards a Japanese bullet train to execute a job that was assigned to him to pick up a non-descript briefcase and disembark at the next station. However, to his surprise, this seemingly simple task puts him in line with some interesting odd-ball characters, each one with a different mission.

Bullet Train is a sexy, stylish mad-caper action film that works because of its ability to put together a cast that boasts eminent names including Brad Pitt. To put it in a nutshell, I’d say that the film from the director of Deadpool 2, David Leitch, the end of the line is only the beginning in a wild, non-stop thrill ride through modern-day Japan. Bullet Train plays an ode to the 90’s action films and the way it’s shot, it will also remind you of Tarantino’s cult classic, Kill Bill. The year is 2022 and it has taken two 90’s heartthrobs, mega movie stars — Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt to lure us back into theatres.

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The film abounds with several interesting characters who crop up mid-way through in the film. There is a British hitman Tangerine (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) and his partner in crime Lemon (Brian Tyree Henry) who cannot lose that bag at any cost. There’s also a young girl with a mysterious agenda (Joey King), a venomous snake, an underworld kingpin called the ‘White Death’ (Michael Shannon) and a father-son duo who seeks revenge and redemption (Hiroyuki Sanada as The Elder and Andrew Koji as Kimura). All said and done, the camera work and well-choreographed stylised action all succeed in keeping you glued to the edge of your seat. With the story pretty much staying constant, Bullet Train does feel like it takes a bit longer to reach Kyoto than you’d expect, though you just cannot find fault with the slick editing.

It is indeed breath-taking to see Brad Pitt return to the screens in a comic avatar with the film and walk away with all the accolades. Besides Brad Pitt, the film also has sterling performances by Sandra Bullock, Aaron Taylor- Johnson, Brian Tyree-Henry and Benito. A. Martinez Ocasio. However, Joe King looked like a misfit in the film as she lacks the potential for her role in the film.