Since the dawn of history, revenge is a recurring theme in life and fiction. There is no culture that does not have some myth or historical incident in which it is not present. Cinema is no exception and its repetition is such that it has managed to transform into a kind of subgenre (having special relevance in the filmography of directors as diverse as Sergio Leone, Quentin Tarantino or Park Chan-Wook). Although it is true that today it seems that everything has already been said by Chad Stahelski and his tetralogy of John Wick (which marked a milestone due to its high quality, extremely real and convoluted sequences, practical effects on set and a stylized and powerful imprint), from time to time feature films appear that draw on this and other sources to bring a fresh look at this very plot. hackneyed; recent titles like Monkey Man, Silent Night, Violent Night They remind us that revenge still has much to offer. It is in this line that we get to the billboard Boy Kills World, the new movie Lionsgate y Roadside Attractions who comes to explore this archetypal story with unconventional codes.
Set in a totalitarian society, Boy Kills World tells us the epic of Boy (Bill Skarsgrd), a young man who wants revenge on the Van Der Koys: the powerful and corrupt family that reigns with an iron fist in the city where he lives. The matriarch and maximum leader, Hilda Van Der Koy (Famke Janssen), executed his mother and her sister when he was just a child and, as if that were not enough, she tortured him in gruesome ways, leaving him deaf and cutting out his tongue. Orphaned, traumatized, broken and in pain, Boy ended up escaping to the outskirts of civilization where he was rescued by Shaman (Yayan Ruhian), a kind of martial arts master who was also a victim of the regime and who will be in charge of training our protagonist to that he can take revenge.
Written by Tyler Burton Smith (video game screenwriter such as Sleeping Dogs, Quantum Break, Alan Wake II) y Arend Remmers (The Island, Ze Network, Dogs of Berlin), Boy Kills World It is an atypical mix of narrative codes and cinematographic genres. In purely structural terms, it has all the conventions of a feat of revenge: a heinous and violent crime against an innocent person, an antagonistic figure who embodies pure evil, an eccentric mentor who brings out the best in the protagonist with unorthodox methods, sidekicks who support the hero in his journey, dozens of armed enemies against whom it seems impossible to triumph, a lot of violence, gushing blood, weapons of all kinds and combats that escalate in complexity as the plot progresses. He twist What this feature film brings lies in how it tells us the story, using a voice in off epic (which is expressed as if reading a script written by a child), a development that is far from being a perfect and well-executed plan (closer to childish oversimplification than to meticulous revenge), characters that seem taken from the cinema class B action (with outlandish costumes and almost self-parody dialogue), altered states of consciousness (ranging from horror to humor stoner), hallucinations (which add a touch of drama) and a lot of nods to other forms of entertainment. And yes, although Boy Kills World It seems heir to the school of Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino, it is really very different from what we have seen from these and other possible counterparts.
Moritz Mohr’s cousin pear, Boy Kills World takes a lot of visual references from fighting video games (where eccentric characters fight in locations as diverse as jungles, markets, factories, kitchens or mansions), Asian films (ranging from Drunken Master until Oldboy), dystopas (like Equilibrium, Dredd y The Hunger Games) and other allusions to culture pop (like cereal with pets kitsch, trash TV shows or Daft Punk), fusing each of these elements in a perfect dance between action, gore, drama and comedy. Of course, the fight sequences are its main attraction, giving us combat of all kinds (hand-to-hand, shootouts, using various weapons and objects, etc.) where the choreography and staging shine for their originality and self-confidence. Particular line in which Lucian Barnard’s montage (I Am All Girls, Asinamali, Slot) shines, creating jokes between cuts, highlighting the rawness and violence with the rhythmic montage, playing with the frame rate and ellipses to build that tempo that characterizes video games where something is always happening. Rhythm that is maintained at all times and that, thanks to the story, allows the exploration of different editing techniques and dramatic registers between flashbacks, humor, fights and surreal incidents. Sam Raimi’s stamp (Evil Dead, Spider-Man, Dont Breathe, Crawl) in the production can give an idea of the type of risks the story takes and the tone it builds.
Continuing with the visual imprint, the cinematography of Peter Matjasko (Dark Satellites, The Magic Flute, A Heavy Heart) and Mike Berg’s Production Design (The Congo Murders, Shepherds and Butchers, Disgrace), stand out for their versatility. Unlike other counterparts in the revenge subgenre (who build a tone and stick with it by playing variations of it), both create different moods with the lighting and color palette giving life to varied and completely dissimilar scenarios: a jungle illuminated with natural light or with an incipient bonfire, flashbacks with the typical dream filter and saturated colors, warm spaces and fancys in a mansion, a television set that, at times, becomes a children’s play, factories in very poor situations or a modern base of operations. Both are responsible for building the feeling to go from a stage to another, as if it were a video game, in each scene of Boy Kills World. Added to this is the music of Ludvig Forssell (composer of the soundtracks of the latest masterpieces of the genius Hideo Kojima such as Death Stranding, Metal Gear Solid V y P.T.) giving a epic, melodramatic and tragicomic touch to each moment of the story.
Bill Skarsgrd not only shines for his physical transformation typical of these feature films or the choreographies he performs: the main attraction of the character he plays is in communicating only with his gaze and facial expressions but as if he were a child. This contrast between the complexion of a deadly warrior, but who acts like a boy playing a video game makes up much of the charm (and the jokes) of Boy Kills World. Of course, the cherry on top is the spicy voice that H. Jon Benjamin adds to the character. The interpretation of him as a narrator (which serves to understand Boy’s psyche and make some winks that seek to break the 4th wall) makes any dialogue hilarious due to its great drama.
Next to Boy we have another key element in his development: Quinn Copeland (who plays the ghost of his younger sister). The contrast she creates by moving through dangerous scenarios, as if she were a girl in a park trying to sabotage her older brother’s game, is extremely fun. In addition, she serves as a kind of anthropomorphized conscience to understand Boy’s transformation arc, her appearances help Bill Skarsgrd to enter into that childish line of I’m a boy, but I have to pretend I’m a tough guy. Furthermore, her appearances confront the hero with reality and teach him that, although it is true that she has been preparing for his revenge for years, it is also difficult to face the result of it. Accompanying Boy we have his mentor Yayan Ruhian (Shaman), who is a tribute to So-Hai (The Drunken Master), but full of entegenos and with a lot of violence. An enigmatic and fascinating figure due to the halo of mystery that covers him (and that moves between comedy and horror). Finally, we have the great duo that the sidekicks of the protagonist: Isaiah Mustafa (Bennie) and Andrew Koji (Basho), the first giving us one of the best running gag of the film (the problem of communication) and the second in a role so histrionic that, at times, we don’t know if he is as crazy or crazier than Shaman.
As wonderful as Boy and his entourage we have the antagonists of the story: the Van Der Koys. Far from being copies with gradients of evil of each other, each member of the family is unique and special. Sharlto Copley (Glen Van Der Koy) sells himself as a vain narcissist who, deep down, is a zero on the left who only follows the orders of Michelle Dockery (Melanie Van Der Koy), the mastermind in charge of perpetuating the terrifying image of the family. Brett Gelman (Gideon Van Der Koy) plays the black sheep, the guy who wants to be tough, but deep down he knows that he acts wrong and this generates internal conflicts when things get out of control. As expected, whoever steals the show and lives up to the build up her character is Famke Janssen. She gives life to a terrifying woman, but with a psyche so fragile that what scares us is her instability and the important position of power that she has (she is like a dictator). borderline with the future of a nation on his shoulders). Finally, I cannot leave out Jessica Rothe (June 27), who plays the typical minion of the antagonists, but in a couple of actions he shows that he still has a little heart, earning our empathy.
Very in tune with what is happening today (and has always been), Boy Kills World It puts the magnifying glass on the excesses of totalitarian regimes, the submission of their victims and how violence begets more violence. Like Boy, there are many children who have had to grow up by force thanks to trauma and who end up being manipulated until they are transformed into lethal weapons that feed on resentment and a thirst for revenge. A spiral that only leads to death and from which it is difficult to escape. As Boy’s transformation arc clearly demonstrates, the only antidote to the hatred that destroys everything is to not lose our hearts and hold on to that which makes us human despite all the pain and death around us. That force that, although it sounds corny, is what keeps us together no matter where we are: love.
The best: the mixture of references so varied in their aesthetics and narrative. Its fast pace and the play between different registers. Its extremely dynamic, funny and violent action sequences. The twists of the script. The post-credit scene.
The bad: His proposal is so extravagant that for some it will be taken as a class B movie. The drama of the third act, although it is in favor of character development, is a slowdown in the pace that leads to the story (which gains strength again with the final fight). .
About the Author:
Luis Bond is a director, screenwriter, editor and teacher. Since 2010 he has dedicated himself to film criticism on the web, radio and in print publications. He is Tomatometer-approved critic in Rotten Tomatoes ( ). His training in cinema has been complemented by studies in deep analytical psychology and symbolism.
Twitter (X), Instagram, Threads, TikTok: @luisbond009
Web: www.luisbond.com
