Review of First Kill (2017) by C F — 22 Sep 2017

After watching the trailer for this one, I was pretty excited to see it. I've been a fan of director Steven C. Miller's work from the beginning and I really dig heist movies. I also wanted to see what Hayden Christensen would bring to the role. I haven't seen him in anything since the prequels.

The story unfolds as a bank robber kidnaps a young boy and forces the boy's father (Christensen) to bring him the loot from the robbery to save his son. I thought the story was good for the most part. There were a couple of parts that didn't make sense, but not enough to take away from the overall story. However, I do think the story lacked tension and suspense, which I think would have made the story a better sell. I will say that the film started and ended pretty strong, but the middle felt a little underwhelming.

The acting was decent for the most part. I personally think that Gethin Anthony, the guy who played the bank robber Levi and Ty Shelton, the kid who played the son Danny, gave the most believable performances, especially when they were interacting with one another. Christensen was okay, but I never felt from his performance that his son was in danger. Bruce Willis played the local sheriff. I truly felt that his performance might have been the worst of the bunch. At times it was decent, but more often than not, it felt like he just didn't want to be there.

The film was shot very well and had a nice aesthetic, much like most of director's past projects. The locations and set pieces were really good as well. There was some really good action sequences, most notably a chase sequence early on in the film.

All and all, I enjoyed the film for what it was, a low budget action film. I wouldn't go into it hoping for a contender for the best movie of the year, but it's a good watch and definitely worth the price of the rental.