Review of Essential Killing (2010) by James M — 16 Apr 2011

Vincent Gallo gives quite possibly his best acting performance to date in this very serious and minimalist Arthouse action film.

He plays a Taliban soldier captured by US Allied Forces. He's taken to a Russian Guantanamo Bay-type place but subsequently escapes after a Harrison Ford/Fugitive-type crash allows him to make a run for it. The film draws on him adapting (or trying to adapt) to the sub-zero Russian temperatures and him working on survival instincts that he wouldn't normally be used to. This is the film's (and Gallo's) strength.

I liked the film for its lack of bravado; he's not a hero and we don't really root for the guy. It's a study on survival as the character becomes almost like an animal where his instincts to survive reduce him to an almost feral state despite how futile it all is with the odds being severely stacked against him.

I don't know whether I could say that I came out of the film feeling like I had enjoyed it, it's not that kind of film. I'm certainly glad I saw it mainly because I've never seen anything quite like it before.

There's no dialogue in the film per sé but neither does the film require any. Essential Killing is a powerful and well made film that may well stick with you for days, as difficult and as troubling as it can be in places.