You Kill Me (2007)

Director:

John Dahl

Writers (WGA):

Christopher Markus (written by) &
Stephen McFeely (written by)

Release Date:

6 July 2007 (Canada)

Genre:

Comedy | Crime | Romance | Thriller

Tagline:

A killer comedy by John Dahl

Plot:

While drying out on the West Coast, an alcoholic hit man befriends a tart-tongued woman who might just come in handy when it's time for him to return to Buffalo and settle some old scores.

Plot Keywords:

Male Female Relationship | Sales Executive | Hit Man | Alcoholic | Polish American

Awards:

1 win & 2 nominations

US TV Schedule:

Sat. Aug. 30

2:25 AM

HBO

Cast

Ben Kingsley	...	Frank Falenczyk
Téa Leoni	...	Laurel Pearson
Luke Wilson	...	Tom
Dennis Farina	...	Edward O'Leary
Philip Baker Hall	...	Roman Krzeminski
Bill Pullman	...	Dave
Marcus Thomas	...	Stef Krzeminski
Scott Heindl	...	James Doyle
Alison Sealy-Smith	...	Doris Rainford (as Allison Sealy-Smith)
Aron Tager	...	Walter Fitzgerald
Jayne Eastwood	...	Kathleen Fitzgerald
Al Corley	...	Man in Park
Erik Fjeldsted	...	Kevin
Aaron Hughes	...	Stanley
Devin McCracken	...	Henry

MPAA:

Rated R for language and some violence.

Runtime:

93 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.55 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Australia:M | Singapore:NC-16 | UK:15 | Germany:16 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Manitoba Production Centre, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

Company:

Bipolar Pictures

Trivia:

Shot in 26 days.

Goofs:

Continuity: In the scene in the park where Frank is hiding behind trees while Laurel times him, Frank stands three times by a black car. The license plate on that car changes from California to Manitoba and back to California.

Quotes:

Tom: [regarding Frank's admission of his career as a hitman to the Alcoholics Anonymous group] Actually, it went better than you think. It did
Laurel Pearson: How do you know they won't tell the police?
Frank Falenczyk: It's Alcoholics Anonymous.
Tom: Somehow I don't really feel that's what they had in mind when they came up with the name, but you never know.

Movie Connections:

Features The Phantom of the Opera (1925)

Soundtrack:

Vengo! Vengo!

Hits the mark

Hollywood loves assassins. You can't go more than a few weeks without a new hit-man movie hitting (sorry) the multiplexes. Hell, later this year, there's a movie coming out literally called "Hitman".

The new trend seems to be putting comedic twists on the assassin film. I guess we can thank Tarantino for that. Within the past few years, stuff like "Mr.& Mrs. Smith", "The Whole Nine Yards", "The Matador", "Grosse Pointe Blank", and "Lucky Number Slevin" gave us clever little plays on the assassin genre. If you're at all familiar with those films, you'll feel right at home with "You Kill Me".

Ben Kingsley plays Frank Falenczyk, a hit-man for the Polish Mob out of Buffalo, New York. Frank's an alcoholic, and recently it's been affecting his work. As a result, his superiors send him to San Francisco to attend Alcoholics Anonymous until he can sober up.

The movie doesn't win any points for originality, but it does have a lot to offer. Kingsley puts on a capable, sympathetic show - pretty impressive for a guy who spends the majority of the film getting hammered. Téa Leoni does well enough as the obligatory love interest. The age difference took a little getting used to. Dennis Farina and Philip Baker Hall are a treat to watch playing essentially the same roles they've been playing forever. Hall is the soft spoken head of the Polish Mob Family, while Farina is the loudmouth villain heading up the Italians. Bill Pullman also has a small role as a sleazy real estate agent. Anyone who's seen "Lucky Numbers" knows that Pullman has a talent for quirky lowlifes, and he shines here.

This is a very light movie. It won't blow you away in any regards, but it is a solid 90 minutes of easy entertainment. The script is essentially Frank's struggle to fight his habit. We also get a light love story and a touch of crime thriller. It's a strange juggling act, but Kingsley and director John Dahl pull it off. Don't get discouraged by the bland name. With just enough laughs, drama, and action – this is a small movie than just about anybody can have fun with.