A street-smart mob comedy about a hitman (Kingsley) with a drinking problem that gets in the way of his killing. When mismatched people find a common calling the most unlikely relationships are formed and explored through dead-on performances by Kingsley, Wilson and Leoni.
Ben Kingsley is remarkable in You Kill Me, a comedy-drama with an absurdist touch. The Oscar-winning British actor plays Frank Falenczyk, an alcoholic hitman from New York sent by his boss, Roman (Philip Baker Hall), to dry out in San Francisco just when a new crime lord (Dennis Farina) is moving in on Roman's turf. Frank reluctantly follows instructions and takes a Bay Area apartment, finds a part-time job as a mortician, and attends Alcoholics Anonymous meetings. Acquiring a thoughtful sponsor and friend (Luke Wilson) through AA, Frank begins reflecting seriously about his life and responsibilities, and even becomes romantically involved with a delightfully acerbic woman (Téa Leoni).
Feeling respected and loved in the early days of his sobriety, Frank does what a lot of people do in similar situations: take stock of past mistakes and be completely honest with everyone. When he reveals to his companions and AA group that he has, at times, seriously messed up his work as a killer because of booze, the universal response is supportive with only a streak of, well, moral ambivalence. From there, the sky's the limit for a hired gun with a boost in self-esteem. You Kill Me is the kind of movie that can get an audience to suspend disbelief significantly without drawing too much attention to that fact. But that doesn't mean the film's noir roots don't show. Director John Dahl (The Last Seduction) has made You Kill Me as tough as any other movie he's shot, and his fascination with human weakness and resilience in the face of unexpected obstacles enriches a wonderful story. --Tom Keogh
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.0 / 5.0
An Overlooked Gem!:
I loved everything about this "little" movie. Let's start with its stellar cast -- Ben Kingsley is perfect as the lead, injecting just the right tone of humor, regret, and irony into his complex killer alcoholic family man role. Tea Leoni is refreshing, and obviously needs to work more. She is well-cast as the somewhat flawed, understanding companion to Frank, and also brings the perfect mordant comic touch. The rest of the cast is filled out with veteran character actors such as Philip Baker Hall... more info
Refreshingly different:
"You Kill Me" is a surprisingly heartfelt little comedy, although a dark comedy would better describe it. It's not the kind of movie that will make you laugh out loud, but you might chuckle from time to time and you will definitely find yourself smiling a lot. The story is not quite what you would expect and is certainly a fitting "romance" for today's modern life. Hey, the world right now is pretty screwed up and so is the "romance" between the two main characters; but hey, it just seems to work.more info
Funny, Well-Written Absurdist Comedy:
You Kill Me is one of the movies that's entertaining on so many levels. Openly, unabashedly silly, this is a movie that doesn't take itself too seriously, but is clever enough to engage the viewer. Sir Ben Kingsley plays Frank Falencyk, a hitman who works for a Polish crime family in Buffalo. He's hits the skids in a big way by becoming an alcoholic. His work becomes so affected by his problem that he misses making a big hit on the Irish rival of his family. As a result, he's sent to San Francisco to... more info
must see:
This is a must see for anyone in a twelve step program. All of us who watched it laughed our sober butts off. There was no way to make this better.
