ASSASSIN

(director/writer: Jesse Atlas; screenwriter: Aaron Wolfe; cinematographer: Bryan Koss; editor: Philip Harrison; music: Mark Teweson; cast: Bruce Willis (Valmora), Andy Allo (Mali), Nomzamo Mbatha (Alexa), Dominic Purcell (Adrian), Mustafa Shakir (Sebastian), Fernanda Andrade (Olivia), Eugenia Kuzmina (Trainer), Barry Jay Minoff (Marko); Runtime: 88; MPAA Rating: R; producers: Najeeb Khuda, Gavin Lurie, Joel Shapiro, Jeff Elliott, Alex Eckert, Thomas Sjolund; Saban; 2023)

“Could have used a better developed story.”

Reviewed by Dennis Schwartz

Because of poor mental health this is Bruce Wllis’s final film, one that leaves him in a shallow role, in a disappointing film that bombs out despite a promising techno thriller plot. It’s directed by Jesse Atlas (“Let Them Die Like Lovers”/”Lesson One”) and co-written by Atlas and Aaron Wolfe.

A man dies participating in an experimental Army program, and a former black-ops soldier takes his place to find his killer.

Secret agents Valmora (Bruce Willis) and Olivia (Fernanda Andrade) send Alexa (Nomzamo Mbatha) on a mission to retrieve a top secret device that enters the brain to allow others to inhabit their body. Sebastian (Mustafa Shakir), Alexa’s husband, died because Adrian (Dominic Purcell) stole that device from him. It’s up to Alexa to find the device while inhabiting the body of Mali (Andy Allo).

The film is clunky, the actors seem lost in their roles and the dialogue is witless. It never gets on the right track.

It’s a forgettable pic, one that could have used a better developed story.

 

REVIEWED ON 4/25/2023  GRADE: C+