‘To Catch a Killer’ Review: Shailene Woodley Tortures Herself (and Us) in Dull ‘Silence of the Lambs’ Copycat – IndieWire
If a drained retelling of a serial killer thriller premieres in theaters and no one sees it, did it truly occur? Sadly, sure.
For “To Catch a Killer,” her first characteristic in two years, Shailene Woodley (who additionally produces the movie) makes an attempt to craft her personal tackle the inimitable Clarice Starling. However we’ve all already seen “To Catch a Killer” earlier than: The thriller is a watered-down notch within the belt of psychological serial killer dramas within the vein of all the things from “Silence of the Lambs” to “Zodiac,” even “The Darkish Knight” and “The Batman.” Imitation? It’s not all the time the very best type of flattery.
The movie marks director Damián Szifron’s English-language debut. As soon as a scorching filmmaker after collaborating with producer Pedro Almodóvar on 2014 Cannes-selected satirical movie “Wild Tales,” which had the largest opening in Argentinian movie historical past on the time, Szifron successfully disappeared from filmmaking for over a decade regardless of being set to helm Mark Wahlberg’s “Six Billion Greenback Man” remake. Now, “To Catch a Killer” is Szifron’s misdirected (actually) comeback, with a script he co-wrote with Jonathan Wakeham.
The movie opens with a powerful bloodbath: An skilled sniper slaughters greater than 25 random individuals all through Baltimore by capturing into excessive rises in the course of the New Yr’s Eve fireworks present. Eleanor Falco (Woodley) is among the first cops on the scene of a very devastating homicide of a younger boy; quickly, she will get recruited by the FBI’s chief investigator (Ben Mendelsohn) to assist profile and hunt the killer.
Per the official synopsis (sure, this even features a cringe-inducing determined name out to Jodie Foster’s Clarice Starling herself), Eleanor’s “tortured psyche” makes her the “solely one that can perceive the thoughts of their assailant and convey him to justice.” However why is she scooped up by the FBI so casually and so shortly? As a result of Eleanor has a traumatic background and is actually sensible and different imprecise causes.
“To Catch a Killer”
Vertical
Most of her “investigating” comes from eavesdropping on what the true FBI brokers, led by Mendelsohn’s character, are saying. It’s not till the midway level of the film that Eleanor broadcasts the company ought to be trying into ex-military veterans with sniper backgrounds as a result of shooter’s marksmanship. Wouldn’t this be one of many first issues the FBI would do? Even a fundamental procedural present like “Legislation & Order” would know higher — and supply higher pacing.
Mendelsohn’s casting as an FBI agent is distracting sufficient as a “Darkish Knight Rises” alum, which makes it obviously apparent simply how badly “To Catch a Killer” stacks up towards Christopher Nolan’s movies and different crime dramas. The colour palette is identical — miserable gray — as is the final temper, as infinite stakeouts show to be fruitless, the cops solely discovering leads after one more shootout has occurred.
Throw in heavy-handed political commentaries on gun violence, right-wing media, and first-person-shooter videogames, and “To Catch a Killer” makes even much less sense. It’s laborious to not giggle out loud when Eleanor reveals her personal darkish previous that led her to turning into a cop: It’s shot like a comedy, and makes us surprise if Szifron was even taking Woodley’s apparent performing automobile significantly or not.
“To Catch a Killer”
Vertical
It might be grotesque to match how “To Catch a Killer” tries to do a beat-by-beat remake of David Fincher’s “Zodiac,” a real masterpiece. It might even be in poor style to convey the revulsion of violent sequences that deal with all the things from racist motivations to the necessity to cleanse the U.S. for a nationwide “reset” within the vein of the Qanon religious. There isn’t any commentary or considerate rationalization to any of it, simply blind statements despatched out to agitate and confuse its viewers.
It’s sufficient to make us surprise the actually loopy: Are we presupposed to be rooting for this killer? Contemplating how a lot we’re compelled to consider a homeless veteran is the one slaughtering dozens of individuals in public because of a head trauma from fight, it’s a sound query. However there’s no actual reply right here, simply as there’s no actual message to the movie. It’s no “Zodiac,” no “Silence of the Lambs,” and positively no film price watching.
Ranking: D
Vertical releases “To Catch a Killer” in theaters on Friday, April 21.
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