This is a tough one. Everyone will get something out of The Killer but some will get more out of it than others, specifically David Fincher fans and people who’re into the action revenge genre. I’d say I’ve seen the most significant pieces of Fincher’s filmography (Se7en, Fight Club, The Social Network) but while there were moments where I suspected it, I didn’t realise that The Killer was a satire of Fincher’s style and action revenge films until after I’d watched it. Now this isn’t to say that you have to be a Fincher or action revenge fan to appreciate The Killer because, even by itself, it’s still an engaging and suspenseful little thriller.

Michael Fassbender portrays an unnamed hitman who unexpectedly blunders an assassination. His superiors punish him by breaking into his home and assaulting his girlfriend. Enraged, the killer hunts for the client who placed the hit, working his way through six individuals who, in their own way, arranged and orchestrated the attack on his partner. What he will do when face-to-face with his client we can only anticipate.

Breaking down and analysing the key elements of The Killer is a difficult task, one I’m not confident enough to attempt today. I don’t believe I’m alone in this. Many critics and commentators have left the film feeling baffled, unsure of what they’ve just seen. The Killer might be one of those films that don’t get appreciated until 10 or 15 years after its release and earn the alluring title of ‘a forgotten masterpiece’.

Or this could just be another blip in Fincher’s filmography; not bad, just not up to standard.

The only component I can really examine is the killer himself. The film’s use of voice-over narration is definitely one of the best I’ve seen in recent years. Fassbender’s hitman narrates the entire film and everything we see either confirms or contradicts what he says.

He lectures about the importance of divorcing oneself from emotion yet we watch him embark on a quest that’s fueled entirely by emotion. He tells himself to “forbid empathy” and focus on what’s in it for him but as he progresses in his quest, getting nearer to the man who coordinated the attack on his home, his commitment appears dubious. This creates suspense that holds your attention throughout the whole film. Whether you’re enjoying it or not, you’ll want to see what happens when he finally confronts the client.

I believe the film’s substance is found in its style and not its story. The premise of The Killer is simple, really simple. So simple that it’s quite surprising that it was considered by the likes of Fincher.

We should know everything about Fassbender’s character yet we know little to nothing, the film makes no effort to get us to care about him and I believe that’s the point. A typical action revenge film would try to make you care for its protagonist and how they’ll be by the end of the story. The Killer however has no such ambition. It places you at an emotional distance where you see Fassbender’s hitman more like an animal in the wild than a character you can project onto.

The suspense of whether or not he’ll kill the client definitely helps. Many scenes show a great juxtaposition between what he says in his narration and what he does on screen. You’re forced to ask yourself ‘Is he a killer?’ Is he the psychopathic monster he describes himself as? Or is that just what he wants to be?

If you’re a Fincher fan I don’t have to recommend it to you. You’ve probably already seen it since it’s been on Netflix for nearly a month. Anyone who’s into action or revenge films may appreciate how this film satirizes the motifs of those genres. If you’re like me, you’ll still get something out of it but as I said at the beginning, some will get more out of it than others and I suspect I’m in that group.

Maybe I’ll like it more if I watch John Wick and some YouTube video essays.

For now, I give The Killer an intriguing and respectful 8 out of 10.