Review of A Short Film About Killing (1988) by James-Masaki R — 23 Sep 2010

Does a killer deserved to be killed? Whether it is a mass murderer, or a kid on a whim, should the penalty be the same? A young 20 year old from a broken home on his own decides that he wants to kill, without any particular reason. A middle-aged taxi driver with no luck with love wanders aimlessly. A lawyer that has just passed his examination is excited to finally work in the judicial system. Whether by fate or not, these 3 will eventually meet in some form.

Kieslowski always likes to shoot multiple stories and have them eventually meld together, which make them infinitely rewatchable, no matter how grim the subject is. And the green/gold filters that will be prevalent in his later film "The Double Life Of Veronique" is first put to use here in the storytelling, and so is the masking of the image on partial frames, epecially with the young Jacek which may be distracting, but shows his 'frame' of mind well. Kieslowski is a master. It's just a shame that there will be no more films from him...