MovieChat Forums > 3 Days to Kill (2014) Discussion > Dark, Strange and Badly Written

Dark, Strange and Badly Written

posted 11 years ago by Dash1969
14 replies | jump to latest

Kevin Costner makes this material far better than it deserves to be. The tone breaks in to dark comedy territory at strange times and there never seems to be a coherent focus to anything. I’d say 65% of the film focuses on Costner’s character connecting with his estranged daughter. The other 35% is flippant assassin stuff focusing on an operative who doesn’t seem to care that he’s putting that same daughter in mortal danger. It felt like the movie wanted to be “True Lies” but didn’t know how to get to the fun stage of the concept. We’re even cheated out of a “True Lies” type reveal to his daughter at the end which is one of the things I was looking forward to. There’s an almost cartoon-like supporting cast and the writing, at times, is so awful that it does play like a bad cartoon.

Again, this thing jumps from tame action scenes to strange dark comedy to father/daughter pathos but it isn't very good at any of them at all. Unfortunately, it’s a dark, strange and plodding effort that could have been so much better.

[–] one189teen50five 11 years ago

You know how to criticize but don't add SPOILER you idiot?

[–] Dash1969 11 years ago

Sorry.

[–] jacksonmayhem 11 years ago

There was nothing wrong with the writing, you just didn't like it. There's a difference.

[–] scorpion-52 11 years ago

I think you're dead wrong, I liked this film for trying to be different.

[–] 11 years ago

[deleted]

[–] scorpion-52 11 years ago

I thought it worked pretty well.

[–] remembervhs 11 years ago

i thought it was really bad

[–] one189teen50five 11 years ago

You don't know what you're talking about...you come up with a perfect script, film it, and then ask us to critique it, why don't you? Think it's that easy. Try writing just one page of a script, a story, a novel, and see if you think it's easy. I KNOW it isn't because I am a writer and it's hard, very hard. You put a lot of work into something and you do the research, you come up with unique situations and lines, you pit man against man, man against nature, man against self, and there are other rules. Just try it.

[–] Freethink7 11 years ago

Take it easy! One of the very first things a succesful writer needs to learn is to deal -in a healthy way- with rejection and criticism. You know that.

[–] one189teen50five 11 years ago

FREE...we are not talking about my writing here. I know what I need to know. I am aware of rejection. But I saw something very different in this movie that maybe others brush off: to me it's unique. A man working in a very dangerous, death-always-possible job. He should have remained single but didn't. So on his last job, he is faced with the grim reaper. He is given his walking papers because he is no longer needed. What else can he do but call it a day, go to his rented place in Paris and reconnect with his family. And then a chick who comes on heavy and thick to him offers him something that can maybe reverse the situation. Isn't experimental medicine at least worth a try? What else do you have to lose? As Vivi points out to him, on that mad drive through Paris, the CIA had nothing to lose by getting him to do this last trigger job and if he dies doing it, so what to the CIA. I do wish the dvd had included extra scenes cut out and so on but they didn't. I think this story is great. All the actors are great. I don't see why everybody has to junk this.

[–] pschopenhauer 11 years ago

Spot on review really, this movie didn't know what it wanted to be. It felt like there were 3-4 movies going on at once, and that seems like Besson jammed a bunch of ideas he had going into one movie. That's not really unusual as that's what Besson is known for (ex. The Fifth Element). It was just a really strange movie going experience. So much of the movie didn't go together, and nothing really paid off in the end.

[–] subase 11 years ago

Could be alot of subtext. Like from Paris with love and Transporter 3, both written by besson and directed by Megaton.

Megaton also mentions that Costners cia handler, could almost be seen as a delusion and manifestation of femininity, since she is never shown interacting with anyone but costner. So perhaps the strangeness was meant to give this film a delusional/dreamlike tone.

[–] Freethink7 11 years ago

This movies was all right, nothing spectacular or memorable. But none of the undertones worked especially good, not the family drama, or the action, or the dark comedy. It is hard to mix comedy and bloody action flicks, because soo many people are offended by the the thought of making jokes or creating fun around death.
I loved Pain & Gain, perfect dark comedy for me, but many people found it disgusting...

[–] lemner 11 years ago

It was funny and quite watchable. Incidentally, the possibly illusional handler did interact with the Wolf (by shooting him).

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