Customer Reviews

The Killing Gene

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

"The Killing Gene" stars Melissa George as rookie detective Helen O'Mara who is paired with veteran Eddie Argo [Stellan Skarsgard] who is reputed to be a by-the-book cop. They find themselves on the trail of a mysterious killer who seems to target members of a local gang notorious for their acts of violence, each of whom is murdered and carved with "W Delta Z". As they dig deeper, they find that the killings are all related and Helen's in-depth investigation reveals a troubling aspect to the case that is linked to an old case, one which Det Argo would rather not revisit.

This is quite a compelling thriller that makes the viewer think and try to sort out the clues that reveal the motives behind the gruesome murders. There are scenes of torture here that are reminiscent of movies like Saw and Hostel, and disturbingly one involving a kid. The basic premise here has to do with retribution, and this theme is truly convincingly portrayed. The two leads as portrayed by Skarsgard and George are credible in their roles, especially Skarsgard, and finally, there is Selma Blair in one of the most intense roles of her career thus far. Without revealing too much of the plot, I would recommend this movie for those who like compelling thrillers with twists.

The premise of Sartre's "No Exit" is that hell is other people. The flip side plays in "The Killing Gene" directed by Tom Shankland. Hell is choosing to kill someone you love in place of yourself.

The premise begins in a research laboratory with animals. Put one wild card animal in a cage with a group of like kind: snake in with monkeys. Would one monkey sacrifice his life for the others? The research says no. The researcher said the monkeys become just genes. Then two lab assistants decide a twist of provocation on people, beginning with the third lab assistant (Selma Blair) and her mother. They savagely rape and torture her until she kills her mother to stop the hideous assault. The brief snippets of these brutal, bloody hours are not for the squeamish.

Then the serial killings begin through twists and turns of who does what to whom. It becomes a grisly story of extreme betrayal of love and trust. Or are we turned into "genes" in the savage grip of shrieking pain, and it becomes every person for him or herself.

The two newly paired detectives, veteran cop Eddie Argo, played by Stellan Skarsgard (who performs a 180 from his recent role in "Mamma Mia") and Melissa George, a terrified rookie in desperate circumstances but who has the guts to do her job and do it well. This is a detective squad taken right from the set of "Shield"--gritty, profane, probably dirty, and weary and numb from the rawness and violence of their daily lives. As Eddie tells his partner, "There are always shades of gray."

The story is truly film-noir with dark, ugly streets, littered, grafittied halls and walls, dirty, stinking settings in most scenes. So add this bizarre form of serial killing for this squad to solve. Nothing is as it seems.

Sometimes too much of a good thing is not so good. The music--very heavy and atmospheric often over powers the dialog, leaving the viewer to figure out the whispery mumblings of some of the words. However, most films that exude dark and ominous settings overdo it: this one does Dark perfectly.

The conclusion, like most of the story, is an unexpected twist and is past "edgy." Surprisingly, this is one scene played with restraint.

If you don't already know the extremes human beings will take for pain avoidance, then "The Killing Gene" will be a provocative film. But even amongst all the bleakness, there will always exist that one human who will not act according to genes.

I gave the film 4 stars because of the original and somewhat novel script, although as a previous reviewer said, it was certainly reminiscent of Saw and Hostel. If you didn't like those films, this probably won't be for you. I watched the unrated version which may have had more on screen gore, violence, torture than the rated version. Both versions are on the disc.

I won't spend much time revisiting the plot of the film, since it has ably been done by a previous reviewer. The premise is a serial killer wants to prove a mathematical equation, and is using human guinea pigs to prove or disprove the theory.

The theory, is that the individual does not act out of loyalty or love, when given a choice, and will choose to kill a loved one, before dying. The detectives are in a race against time to stop the killer before the equation is completed in human trials, hence the original UK title WAZ, or the killing gene.

The director wanted to preserve a European feel to the film, as opposed to a big budget glossy Hollywood production. He succeeded, making a darker, grittier, seedier flick than a Hollywood production, although I found the dialogue a bit hard to decipher at the beginning of the film, especially with Stellan Skarsgard's accent.

Skarsgard is an accomplished actor, captured the persona of a gruff brooding NYPD detective well, so it may have been the attempt to capture background noises of a big city, during exterior shots, that contributed to the effect.

I thought a number of the British actors pulled off a great job as American street tough gangsters, and was surprised to see Selma Blair of Hellboy II with an integral role in the film.

I must caution I gave this film high marks because I had never heard of the film, had diminished expectations, and was pleasantly surprised at the results. If you don't mind a bit of gratuitous violence it works as a psychological thriller, and has a few somewhat predictable plot twists.

They did a great job of fleshing out the script, and made a seamless transition cutting from NYC exterior shots around Harlem's Morningside Heights, capturing the city's skyline and interior shots in Belfast, Ireland

I'm not sure if it was intentional, but some of the NYC street scenes paid homage to Death Wish, with a new twist. I look forward to seeing other films by director Tom Shankland.

THE KILLING GENE is a bleak thriller filled w/ revenge, torture, and murder. A past crime has caused its victim to exact vengeance in a most grisly, yet intriguing manner. Stellan Skarsgard and Melissa George play the cops who must solve the case before the killer finishes this grim business. Selma Blair (HELLBOY 1 and 2) is chilling in her cold, almost dead portrayal of the woman out for revenge and release. She is superb in this role. Skarsgard and George are also good, as are the rest of the cast. If you enjoyed the SAW or HOSTEL films, or SILENCE OF THE LAMBS, SE7EN, or tv's WIRE IN THE BLOOD, then GENE should satisfy...

... a typical movie that carries two things:
the facade that it is a gratuitous gore fest with little explanation _
- to -
the lesson learned. If you learn it. It really depends on whether you 'get it'.

In the end, he gets it, she is witnessing the first one to 'get it' and is willing to change her research based on the first anomaly that presents itself. I thought it ended well -- a good ending.

One of the most harrowing and psychologically disturbing torture-themed horror movies out there, The Killing Gene (aka W-Delta-Z) is one that was good upon watching it, but that I actually came to appreciate more in the days following it, as events and ideas played around in my mind and I looked at it in different ways. On the surface an overwhelmingly nihilistic movie, you realize after a while that there are subtle aspects and rays of imperfect light peaking through all the vicious darkness that add an unexpected texture.

A jaded police veteran (Stellan Skarsgard of 'The Exorcist: The Beginning') and a young rookie (Melissa George of '30 Days Of Night' and 'Turistas') are the main investigators who uncover a ghastly trail of serial double-murders where in each case, one victim appears to have been tortured into killing the other, usually someone close to them. The case leads down a dark and bloody trail of clues and possible motivations, and surprisingly, the mastermind behind the double-murders turns out to be far from the most vicious character in the series of events. The Killing Gene starts painting a very cynical, very unflattering portrait of humanity, full of loathesome low-lifes and utterly battered-down, mentally defeated would-be good guys, and it's not easy to shrug it off because it's done so damn well. But there are glimmers of other things in there amidst all the raw evil too: shades of characters who've done terribly the wrong thing but thought at the time it was for the right reason; a burgeoning compassion that emerges only in a desperate scene of viciousness; and the strange attempt at a path to redemption taken by a character who was bent into something dark by events absolutely beyond their control. The Killing Gene could have ended up being one of the more depressing movies ever made, but miraculously avoids it and settles on grim and tragic. I don't know about others, but I don't mind tragic or sad movies, but outright depressing I can do without.

The acting is magnificent, especially given the demands of the roles. Skarsgard in particular turns in an award-worthy performance. The movie isn't for everyone, because the brutality level is beyond extreme, but it works for the film. A few of the recent torture-horror movies have been so busy trying to out-brutal every other movie in existance that they've forgotten about everything else, including not just being an extreme movie but being a Good extreme movie. Killing Gene is among the best of its crop though, scary and extremely well done.

The movie does make you think a little. There were some twists that I didn't see coming. The script could have been better though. There were just so many holes. For example, early in the movie, so I am not giving anything away, a thug gets released from the killer. The killer doesn't hide from the victims, so this thug knows who the killer is. Instead of going to get revenge with his gang, he just hangs himself. That didn't make sense to me.

The acting was so-so by everyone in the film. Nobody's performance stands out to me.

I only got it because Tom Hardy was in it, but I found he didn't have a very decent role.

When I saw this movie on hbo early one morning awhile back I knew I had to get it. It stars one of my favorite Swedish actors Stellan Skaesgard and it is a must see for any Stellan Skarsgard fan like me.

Another film with Selma Blair. I wasn't expecting her role in this film at all. I thought she would be the next victem but no.

Anyway,a killer is kidnapping people and the person they each are close to and let the kidnapped person decide who will die based on how much they really love that person. It's a clever plot. The film was well done and good here and there. The twist at the end will be seeable to some people somewhever during the film. I figured out the truth of the main cop during the film half way though i wasn't really sure honestly. Selma blair played her role good and the film in general was clever.

The payoff scene is really great acting especially by Selma Blair and Stellan Skarsgard. It's very emotional. The preceding parts are a chore intentionally. Think of this movie as a nice Jewish girl in dogged pursuit of payback.