Bullet Train review: John Wick, Looney Tunes style

A film that is set in one location and most of its action scenes are beautiful, there’s not much more stunning than this. Nakatomi Plaza in Die Hard. The tenement is Raid. In the bus Tempo. The bullet train is now in Bullet Train. The limitations of art give it its personality. Limiting action in one place gives crew and cast the freedom to focus on the movie’s best parts. They have to use every tool at their disposal to convey every square inch of that space to the audience, so they’ll better appreciate what happens when it all falls to pieces as the combatants carouse from one end to the other.

Bullet TrainThis is the second half of the team responsible for the film, which was directed by David Leitch. John Wick. Leitch, this time, eschews all precision WickHis solo debut was a sombre and tense affair. Atomic BlondeYou can find out more about his work as a director at www.directing.org Deadpool 2. His hands are his. Bullet Train This actioner is Looney Tunes-esque and stars a bunch of silly assassins on the same train from Kyoto. They also all want the same briefcase.

Brad Pitt plays the protagonist, codenamed Ladybug, a preposterously unlucky, semi-retired hitman who’s mostly interested in snatch-and-grab jobs these days. Ladybug boards the titular train intending to grab a briefcase and exit, an ostensibly easy job that he doesn’t think he’ll even need a gun for. Besides, killing really harshes his newly found zen vibes and positive outlook — which he’s happy to talk about at every turn, even with people actively trying to murder him.

A mascot stands in the neon lit gangway of an empty car in Bullet Train.

As Ladybug’s attempts to exit the train are derailed over and over by the arrival of new players, each of them is introduced with a Guy Ritchie-style title card, a snappy codename, and a hint of a backstory that Bullet TrainYou will nearly always think back to. The Wolf (Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, better known as Puerto Rican trap phenom Bad Bunny) is a Mexican assassin out for revenge. LemonEternal’ Brian Tyree-Henry), a British assassin with an affinity for Thomas the Tank Engine, has a mission that extends beyond the briefcase. His brother, Tangerine, is his partner in crime.Kick-Ass Aaron Taylor-Johnson, a star who is a bruiser and loves wearing dapper suits. The mysterious and lethal Prince (meanwhile)The Princess Joey King, star) is a rebellious schoolgirl who pursues her own goals.

All these characters, Ladybug included, are sketched out with the thinnest of details — they’re a collection of quirks and cliches. But each actor makes the most of Zak Olkewicz’s hurried script adapting Kotaro Isaka’s novel. And the action does more to endear the audience to these characters than any of the film’s many hit-or-miss jokes. Many of the jokes are guaranteed to be funny.

Combat in Bullet Train They are short and clear, and have lots of personality. Inspired staging, like a seated scuffle between Ladybug and Lemon in the train’s quiet car (a centerpiece of the film’s trailers), is some of the best of what Bullet Trainoffers, John Wick Comedy is served by choreographic precision. The worst of the film is when it abandons that precision for bombast, like in the film’s wildly destructive finale, which is kind of expected, but still disappointing.

Ladybug and Lemon stare each other down in Bullet Train

Brad Pitt, as Ladybug is an incredibly fun and entertaining action hero. He’s also an irritating guy who has just found therapy. Positive Thinking is PowerfulWithin the same week. It is the best joy Bullet Train is watching the apologetic choreography of Ladybug’s fights, as he alternates between open-palmed peacemaking and accidental murder. He really doesn’t want to beat the shit out of anyone, it’s just that they’re all so committed to killing him, you know?

As cartoonish as it may seem, Bullet Train is committed to letting its core cast make as big an impression as they can through quirks and fights, as Olkewicz’s knotty script ping-pongs between past and present. The film is presented as a mystery — there’s a John Wick-style legend of a Russian gangster who rose through the ranks of the Japanese underworld, and it ties into several characters’ backstories. The story really is a series of Rube-Goldberg machines that each activate in turn and stop every so often to tip over an inanimate object. Inevitably, it’ll bite someone in the ass — usually Ladybug.

Perhaps, the most terrible thing you could say about it? Bullet TrainThe problem is it makes too many attempts to be. TheHit action film, but not superheroes division. Perhaps fewer but more funny jokes would have made it much better. Maybe a greater focus on its Japanese characters would have made for a richer film that’s less distracted by star power — Bullet Train It is baffling that heavy-hitters such as Hiroyuki Snada and Andrew Koji are relegated to background or side roles. This may be to remind the viewers that the movie is set in Japan. Perhaps it would be a better film if Leitch didn’t borrow so many stylistic tics from Guy Ritchie films and just let his own proficiency shine, so people could better appreciate this movie for the incredibly capable action-comedy it is. This movie feels very much like an adaptation of RaidDaffy Duck is the main character.

Bullet TrainFilm premieres in theatres Friday, Aug.