Killer Elite (2011)
Killer Elite is a 2011 action thriller film starring Jason Statham, Clive Owen and Robert De Niro. The film is based on the 1991 novel The Feather Men by Sir Ranulph Fiennes and is directed by Gary McKendry.
Plot.
In 1980, mercenaries Danny Bryce, Hunter, Davies and Meier are in Mexico to assassinate a man. Danny is shot when he becomes distracted after realising he has killed the man in front of the target’s young child. Affected by this, Danny retires and returns to his native Australia. The following year, Danny is summoned to Oman to meet a handler known as The Agent. He learns that Hunter failed a $6 million job. If Danny does not complete Hunter’s mission, Hunter will be executed. Sheikh Amr, a Sheikh and deposed king of a small region of Oman, wants Danny to kill three former SAS troopers—Steven Harris, Warwick Cregg, and Simon McCann —for killing his three eldest sons during the Dhofar Rebellion. Danny must videotape their confessions and make their deaths look like accidents, all before the terminally ill sheikh dies. This will allow the sheikh’s fourth son, Bakhait, to regain control of his father’s desert region. Davies and Meier agree to help Danny for a share of the money. Danny and Meier find Harris still living in Oman and gain access to his house pretending to be researchers making a documentary.
After Harris confesses on videotape, they take him to the bathroom, intending to make it look like he slipped and hit his head. However, Harris’s girlfriend knocks on the door. While Danny and Meier are distracted, Harris attempts to break free, causing Meier to shoot him.
In England, Davies travels to a pub known to be frequented by British military personnel and questions bar patrons about former SAS members in Oman. This is reported to the Feather Men, a secret society of former operatives protecting their own. Their head enforcer, Spike Logan, is sent to investigate.
Davies discovers Cregg preparing for a long nighttime march in wintry weather on the Brecon Beacons mountain range. Danny infiltrates the base, disguised in uniform, and drugs Cregg’s coffee. Danny follows Cregg on the march and makes him confess before the drug sends him into shock to die of hypothermia.
Aware that the Feather Men are now following them,
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Danny decides to use a different tactic to kill their last target, Simon McCann, who is now working as a mercenary. Their plan is to set up a fake job interview to lure McCann out of his house and then to crash a remote-controlled truck into McCann’s car. With the help of the inexperienced Jake, Meier kills McCann; however, Logan and his men were watching over McCann. A gunfight ensues, and Jake accidentally kills Meier. Danny and Davies part ways. Davies is tracked down by Logan’s men, and is fatally hit by a truck while trying to escape.
Danny returns to Oman and gives the sheikh the last confession, which he has faked. Hunter is released, while Danny heads back to Australia and reunites with Anne, a childhood acquaintance. Soon, he is informed by the Agent that there is one last man who participated in the sheikh’s sons’ murders and that this man, Ranulph Fiennes, is about to release a book about his experiences in the SAS.
Production.
The Internet Movie Database cites a number of locations used for filming. Filming began at Docklands Studios Melbourne in May 2010. In July 2010, Jason Statham’s scenes were shot at the Brecon Beacons in Wales. Robert De Niro filmed a scene in Melbourne’s Spring Street set in 1970s Paris. The scene of McCann’s death by tanker truck was filmed on Dynon Road, Melbourne. The final scene was filmed on Little Collins Street in Melbourne. Some London scenes were filmed in Cardiff—in July 2010, De Niro and Statham were seen filming outside The Promised Land Bar on Windsor Place. Other scenes shot in Cardiff were also on Windsor Place, showing the City United Reformed Church, Buffalo bar and various small business buildings.
Reception.
The film, which had a gala-premiere at the 36th Toronto International Film Festival on 10 September 2011, has received negative reviews from critics. Rotten Tomatoes maintains Killer Elite with a 28% approval rating with the consensus stating: “A rote, utterly disposable Jason Statham vehicle that just happens to have Clive Owen and Robert De Niro in it.” Conversely, Roger Ebert gave it 3 stars out of 4, calling it director Gary McKendry’s “impressive debut”, noting he “understands that action is better when it’s structured around character and plot, and doesn’t rely on simple sensation.”Cast:
- Jason Statham as Danny Bryce
- Clive Owen as Spike Logan
- Yvonne Strahovski as Anne Frazier
- Robert De Niro as Hunter
- Lachy Hulme as Steven Harris
- Dominic Purcell as Davies
- Aden Young as Meier
- Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje as The Agent
- Ben Mendelsohn as Martin
- Grant Bowler as Warwick Cregg
- Matthew Nable as Pennock
- Michael Dorman as Jake
- Daniel Roberts as Simon McCann
- Nick Tate as Commander B