Reviewed by Johnny McNair

Lionsgate – 101 mins – 2010 – Rated PG-13 – 1080p Widescreen 2.35: 1 – Dolby Digital DTS-HD 7.1 Audio

Ashton Kutcher really wants to be a movie star, but his choices are so bad that he’s shooting himself in the foot. There are plenty of actors in Hollywood who get by on their looks, but somehow they pick better projects than him. Kutcher’s latest attempt to be a big screen star is the romantic action comedy, Killers, which also stars current rom-com queen Katherine Heigl from TV’s Grey’s Anatomy. The film arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Lionsgate, and even if you’re a fan of Kutcher or Heigl’s, this one may be hard to sit through without tapping the fast forward button.

THE MOVIE

Remember the film Mr.& Mrs. Smith with Brad Pitt and Angela Jolie? Ok, well Killers is a very watered-down version of that disguised as a comedy. The movie begins in France where Jen Kornfeldt (Katherine Heigl) is on a tag along vacation with her parents (played by Tom Selleck and Catherine O’Hara). There she meets a handsome American named Spencer James (Ashton Kutcher) who has a secret, he’s actually an assassin who is on a mission. They have a whirlwind romance and Spencer decides to give up his life of killing just to live a normal life with Jen. They move back to America and get married, and for some time things are normal until Spencer’s past comes back to get him as fellow assassins now target him for termination. Now that Jen learns of Spencer’s shady killer past, the two must bond together to stay alive.

On paper that doesn’t sound like a bad concept, but when you see it in motion it’s not that thrilling. The main problem is that there are way too many clichés that have been used in various other movies about assassins/spies trying to lead a normal life taken from films like Gross Point Blank, True Lies, and of course Mr. & Mrs. Smith. The other issue is the poor chemistry between Kutcher and Heigl that seems more forced than a square peg trying to slam into a round hole. Kutcher who was also one of the film’s producers should have used this film to his potential to swing away from his goofy TV pretty boy image and open up an action leading man slot, but instead he still plays the same character he always does, but now he’s shooting people. Remember a guy named Bruce Willis who was ridiculed when word came out that this TV comedy actor from Moonlighting was being paid a ton of money to be in a little action film called Die Hard? Then people saw that he could pull it off and he solidified himself a spot for himself in the highest paying movie genre. If more care had gone into the project, maybe Kutcher would be in a lot more major meetings right now.

Director Robert Luketic who directed the hit films Legally Blonde and 21 is not even trying to add anything new to the genre and just keeps painting by numbers, hoping that the Kutcher and Heigl effect will make it all shine. Supporting characters such as Tom Selleck, Catherine O’Hara, Casey Wilson, Alex Borstein and Martin Mull are never given anything to do with their screen time, so there was a lot riding on the two leads’ shoulders to make this film somehow work.

Killers is a movie that you may enjoy better if you saw it on a plane or if you were stuck in bed suffering from the flu, basically you have to be immobile to appreciate it. Is it a completely bad film? No, it’s just no different from watching a made for TV movie and seriously lacks an original moment. If you still want to see this film, just know what you’re getting into before you press play. Good luck.

VIDEO

With a 1080p image in a 2.35:1 aspect ratio, the best thing about killers is its amazing video quality. The opening scenes in France look as fantastic as a postcard, and the colors in the suburban American scenes pop off the screen. The detail is so sharp that you can see the pores on the actor’s faces, and every old age line on Tom Selleck’s face. If more care went into the story to match the level of its photography, this would have been quite a film. Killers is great Blu-ray eye candy for you’re your HDTV.

AUDIO

As with the picture quality, the audio for Killers is also top notch, offering a Dolby Digital DTS-HD 7.1 soundtrack. Dialogue is crystal clear and sound effects such as gunshots, explosions and screeching cars will echo from your sound system. Rear and front speakers are nicely balanced to give you the full theater effect. When the action gets going in this film, its actually very loud and more than you would expect from a romantic comedy. Even if you think the film is bad, it will at least keep you awake.

EXTRAS

The bonus content on this Blu-ray is as lame as it gets, and doesn’t even feature a director’s audio commentary, making you think that no one wanted to talk about this movie.

Killer Chemistry is a generic behind the scenes featurette that is ten minutes too long. Cast and crew talk about how great it is to work with each other. The end.

Six deleted scenes are featured, but after viewing them it is very obvious why they were cut.

A one minute gag reel because every Aston Kutcher film needs one.

Finally there are three alternate scenes, including a different ending that should have been the one used in the movie instead of the one chosen.

BOTTOM LINE

Killers could have been a much better film if the powers involved just fleshed it out more and attempted to try something new. You’ve seen everything in this film done much better before and that’s the main problem. The Blu-ray offers excellent picture and sound quality, but other than that there’s nothing else there. This one is for fans of Ashton Kutcher, who still think he’s dreamy and watch repeats of That 70’s Show religiously. For all others it’s just a rental.

SCORES (out of 5):

The Movie: 2.0

Video: 4.0

Sound: 4.0

Extras: 2.0

Bottom Line: 2.5