You Kill Me
There are a lot of opportunities in "You Kill Me" for the film to go awry. After all, it is a comedy about a recovering alcoholic who just happens to be a hit man.And the film is always performing a tightrope act of sorts, as director John Dahl and screenwriters Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely try to balance light and dark elements of the story — and try to make us care about characters who might seem unlikable at first glance.
That they manage to negotiate that potential minefield with only a few missteps is surprising. And the resulting film is an amusingly wry effort that's refreshing, particularly amidst all the overblown, story-deficient summer blockbusters.
Ben Kingsley, in one of his best performances in years, stars as Frank Falenczyk, an assassin who's seen better days. Most recently, Frank passed out in his car and failed to kill Edward O'Leary (Dennis Farina), the chief rival of his mob-connected boss, Roman Krzeminski (Philip Baker Hall).
So Roman has sent Frank to the West Coast to "dry out." Reluctantly, Frank joins an Alcoholics Anonymous support group, where Tom, a gay tollbooth attendant (Luke Wilson), has agreed to be his sponsor.
And, surprisingly, so do Kingsley and Leoni, although they may seem poorly matched on paper. His low-key stylings here and her acid-tongued delivery work well together.
Dahl and the screenwriters (who also collaborated on the cable movie "The Life and Death of Peter Sellers" and the "Chronicles of Narnia" films) also give time to the other characters. The best is the sketchy real-estate agent played by Bill Pullman, who steals every scene he's in.
"You Kill Me" is rated R for strong sexual language (profanity, vulgar slang terms and other suggestive talk), some strong violence (various killings, as well as some vehicular mayhem); slurs based on nationality, ethnicity and sexual preferences; and some brief sex. Running time: 92 minutes.
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