John Woo’s 2024 film The Killer is an odd flick. On its own, it’s a standard hitman action flick. There are super cool set pieces, stylish action scenes, and narrative double crosses. But in context, this film is a direct-to-streaming remake of Woo’s own film of the same name. A movie starring Chow Yun-Fat that has become beloved as an action cinema classic. Woo is potentially risking the legacy of his original film with this film released straight to the 12th most subscribed streaming service.

The Killer (2024) isn’t a bad film. It’s actually quite good. Nathalie Emmanuel does great stepping outside of the Fast and Furious family, and the modern updates are a welcome addition to this hitman tale. The action scenes are masterfully shot with the right amount of slow-mo and finesse to make every sequence look cool. And the double-crossing twists keep the plot feeling fresh throughout. But thirty years post the original, when foreign language films like Parasite can win Oscars, this remake feels unnecessary.

The Shoes of The Killer

The first biggest change between this movie and the original is the gender swap done on the titular killer. Nathalie Emmanuel plays the deadly assassin, Zee, who inadvertently blinds a young woman while on assignment. Zee then decides not to finish her job but to protect the woman. Even if it costs her everything.

The second biggest change comes by way of the film’s climax. I’ll avoid spoilers but this film ends on a much happier note than the original. While there is nothing wrong with this happier ending, it does make the film much closer to a big-budget action flick than the original it shares a name with. The Killer (1989) ends on a dour note with the line between hero and villain thoroughly obscured. Here the film tosses away those grand themes and instead turns Emmanuel’s Killer into something closer to an Ethan Hunt than a Leon the Professional.

Action Spectacle

One thing John Woo delivers in spades is creative action set pieces. The Killer is full of style, iconic imagery, and epic set pieces. Zee’s initial killing spree takes place in a seedy club’s backroom with a two-piece samurai sword and it’s just as epic as it sounds. The film gives Emmanuel countless more moments to look cool in her white Chuck Taylors whether it’s driving a motorcycle through the streets of Paris or shooting rival assassins in an abandoned church. Every action scene is beautifully shot and retains the superb style of the original

The Killer (2024) is brightly lit and cheeky in tone throughout. This is to be expected for any action film in 2024 but it feels a little generic for Woo’s remake. The original film is super slick with a distinct visual style. In the original film, Woo uses a lot of sweeping shots and naturally lit scenes. Here everything is bright and could easily be mistaken for any other high-budget streaming-only action flick.

Too Many Killers

The Killer (2024) is a remake of The Killer (1989) but shouldn’t be confused with The Killer (2023) by David Fincher. The problem here isn’t actually that there are too many films named The Killer, but too many films that feel the same. John Woo’s original The Killer felt distinctly different. In 1989 Hollywood action flicks were almost always led by super buff action stars with hard-to-place accents. Some movies like 1986’s Aliens subverted these expectations, but these were the exceptions that proved the rule. John Woo’s film, while not a Hollywood production, was still a breath of fresh air from the generic action movies of the 80s.

Chow Yun Fat in The Killer (1989) is a bad guy. He’s an assassin working for criminals and the movie makes no bones about it. But it gives him some depth as he tries to atone for his sins. He decides to protect a woman he’s wronged. Someone caught in the crosshair and not deserving of her fate. The film plays with that more by adding a romance between the killer and his blinded would-be target. Suddenly, we aren’t sure if he’s trying to atone for sins or is just following lust. It’s a smart choice that adds dimensional layers to the title character.

Nathalie Emmanuel in The Killer (2024) is a much less conflicted character. She’s an assassin, sure, but one with strict morals and unbreakable rules. She never hurts civilians, always asks if her targets have sinned, and lights a candle for every hit she successfully takes out. The 1989 film was not without a host of religious imagery but its characters were much more ambiguous. They were complex and struggled with morality. When Chow Yun-Fat decides to protect a woman he blinded while on a hit, it feels out of character for him. A hardened criminal killer. But in this remake, when Emmanuel does the same, it feels perfectly on brand for Zee.

Seeing the Good in People

Updating The Killer for Western audiences was a monumental task to begin with. This remake first began life in 1992 with Richard Gere and Denzel Washington set to star. Obviously, it’s gone through many iterations with scores of actors, directors, and writers attached. The film finally came full circle and landed back in the lap of the original director, making for a strange remake/reboot from the original creator.

The Killer (2024) is conflicting because it feels like such a John Woo movie and also vastly different than the original. Another John Woo movie. There have always been stark differences between his Hollywood productions and his Hong Kong ones, and that’s never been more evident than here. The Killer (2024) is a good film but failed to both live up to the original or set itself apart from other 2024 action flicks.