[Rating: Solid Rock Fist Up]
I giggled at the first line of Boy Kills World, the action-horror-comedy-drama-dystopian-hyper-violent fever dream Mortiz Mohr is serving up as his feature directorial debut. I also giggled my way through the trailer.
If you’ve ever watched Bob’s Burgers or Archer, you know the smooth ridiculousness that is H. Jon Benjamin’s voice. With no voice of his own, the titular boy (Bill Skarsgard) chose the voice of his favorite video game character (Benjamin) as his internal dialoguer. And it’s absolutely hilarious.
The Boy grows into a man before our eyes, training with a shaman (Yayan Ruhian) for one purpose – to become an instrument of death and assassinate Hilda Van Der Koy. Hilda (Famke Janssen) is the matriarch of the ruling family in this dystopian wasteland, and responsible for the death of the boy’s mother and sister.
Sure, the plot is derivative (the Hunger Games are prominent, as is Street Fighter and Kung Fu and Star Wars), but it’s a killer mash up of the best the smashed-together genres have to offer. Sam Raimi is a producer, and his influence is clear in the cartoonishly gory fight scenes, as well as the silliness of some of the horror elements.
Skarsgard has no lines in the film, and studied silent movies to prepare for the character. The effort shows – he’s animated and expressive, in such a way that this hyper-violent killing machine is relatable and pretty adorable. He’s a bit like Charlie Chaplin, if Chaplin was an instrument of death and absolutely shredded.
Built like a video game, the plot adheres to structure and uses fight scenes and dialogue as opportunities for levity. The Boy is fighting his way to the boss fight, and taking out Hilda’s relatives on his way to the top. Years of drug use while training left him questioning reality, and the ghost of his little sister (Quinn Copeland) keeps him distracted and motivated. Sharlto Copley, Brett Gelman, and Michelle Dockery are menacing minor bosses, fully committed to their roles as cardboard tropes.
Benjamin’s voice over takes the edge off the madness, anchoring the violence in the goofy. The timing is merciful and the violent scenes build slowly to a crescendo – the audience has plenty of time to prepare themselves for the inevitable from moment to moment. It helps immensely when there are cheese graters and engine blocks involved.
It’s a ride best taken on a big screen, where the absurdity can reach it’s full potential, particularly fun with a theater full of giggles. It’s not for everyone – this movie is dark and pretty twisted, but also full of fairy wings and macarons. Boy Kills World is well-written, uniquely performed, wildly violent, kinda messed up, but also, like really messed up. It’s a whole lotta entertaining spectacle, but with an authentic emotional core – exactly as movies should be.
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