South Messenger - September 19th, 2021

PAGE 12 - MESSENGER - September 19, 2021
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“Kate” misses the mark in assassin film genre
A number of assassin-related films have come to
theaters and streaming platforms within the last few
months, none of which have been a hit, so to speak,
with the viewing public.
This lack of interest from the populous could be due
in part to a desire to see lighter fare but I think it has
more to do with a general perception that it will be just
like the one that came before it.
While there has never been much variation within
the genre — after all, there are only so many ways to
show how a lone person with skills can take down a
weaponized horde — it has seemed lately that writers
and directors are not even trying anymore, relying
instead on popular tropes found within the cinematic
assassin films of yore.
Occasionally, these retreads can click with the
audience but there has to be something new that pulls
them in, something that makes them believe there is a
spark of creative life in a tale that overwhelmingly
deals with death.
The latest film of this type to make an attempt at
bringing something different to the killing field is
“Kate.”
In this Netflix original, the creators take that popular
trope of the weary assassin that is determined to
fulfill the mission and spins it into one where the
weary assassin that is determined to fulfill the mission
has but hours to live.
The employment of that plot device adds a greater
sense of urgency to the narrative but unfortunately
the fulfilment of that creative choice falls a bit short
despite the best efforts of the intriguing lead.
When “Kate” begins, our skilled assassin (played by
Mary Elizabeth Winstead) is contemplating retirement.
Since her teenage years, she has been going
from country to country, killing whomever her handlers
want, but lately has found this way of life to be
unfulfilling.
When she tells her main handler Varrick (Woody
Harrelson, collecting a paycheck) her newfound
doubts, he scoffs and tells her he would give her “two
visits to Walmart” before she changed her mind.
Feeling as if he is right on the mark, she goes about
her latest assignment of picking off Yakuza members
in Tokyo but is unsettled when forced to kill one while
he is in the presence of his young daughter. Shaken by
the events, Kate is more determined than ever to get
out of her current line of work but is again drawn back
in the fold with the promise of making one more hit
that would “cut the head off the rest of the snake.”
During her mission to kill Yakuza boss Kijima (Jun
Kunimura), she experiences sudden fatigue and dizziness
and asks for more time so she can reorient herself.
Not being granted any leeway, she takes the shot,
misses and erratically tries to drive away to safety
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The Reel Deal
before she can pass out.
When she wakes in a hospital
24 hours later, she is informed
that she has been poisoned with a
radioactive material and has less
than a day to live.
Though Kate is literally decaying
from the inside out, she
rejects the doctor’s offer of a “comfortable
death” and decides she
would rather seek vengeance
against those responsible for her
Puzzle solution
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Dedra
Cordle
Occasionally, these retreads can click
with the audience but there has to be
something new that pulls them in.
condition.
Along the way, she meets the young daughter of the
man she previously killed and, with her help, sets out
to go on one final mission to avenge her own murder.
Though “Kate” tries its best to become its own
movie, the tendencies of writer Umair Aleem and
director Cedric Nicolas-Troyan to fall back on wellworn
tropes of action and assassin movies makes it
look like the retread I addressed earlier.
While there are some nice plot deviations and fun
action sequences, the overall film doesn’t necessarily
feel fresh or exciting, especially when overused camera
tricks like blood hitting the lens are employed. It is
well past time directors retire that one, unless, of
course, it’s a 3-D horror — those can stay.
One of the most compelling aspects of this movie is
Winstead, who, after playing The Huntress in “Birds
of Prey” is no stranger to the loner assassin character.
Though Kate is ultimately a ruthless killing-machine,
Winstead plays the part with some vulnerability, especially
when meeting Ani (Miku Martineau), the young
daughter whose father she killed in the opening scene.
They make an odd quasi-mentor/quasi-mentee team
but their relationship is quite underdeveloped, another
unfortunate casualty of the script.
Though “Kate” has many flaws in its execution of
being a trailblazing action/assassin film, there are
enough elements here that make it mostly watchable.
With its pops of color that pay homage to the Japanese
city, a compelling lead, moments of humor and engaging
fight scenes, it’s a decent, albeit violent, way to
pass some time.
Grade: C-
Dedra Cordle is a Messenger staff writer and columnist.
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