You Kill Me

"You Kill Me" is as dark a comedy as you can get. It may also be the first artistically successful romantic comedy noir. Directed by John Dahl (best known for his indie-noirs "Red Rock West" and "The Last Seduction" and the underrated killer trucker flick "Joyride"), the film depicts a hit man (Ben Kingsley-deep in character) forced into Alcoholics Anonymous by his "family" because his drinking has been affecting his ability to kill people. Shipped off to San Franscisco to start his 12 Steps, he picks up a part-time gig at a funeral home and meets a sassy single woman with "boundary issues" (Tea Leoni-hilarious) after her step-dad dies and proceeds to start an unconventional romance with her while struggling to stay on the wagon and learn how to kill again.

The film starts off very low key, and Dahl keeps such a consistently dark tone it's hard to adjust to the cadence. As good as Kingsley is here, the show really belongs to Leoni. When she finally arrives on the scene, the film reaches a level of hilarity you weren't expecting. Her facial expressions, comic timing, and interplay with Kingsley as she learns the truth about his past are pure gold. Leoni has had her fair share of commercial successes ("Bad Boys," "Deep Impact," "The Family Man", and "Jurassic Park III") but it's in this type of offbeat low-budget comedy where she really shines. She was dynamite in "Flirting with Disaster" and was the best foil for Woody Allen since Diane Keaton in the otherwise forgettable "Hollywood Ending." Here all her comic charms are on display, and she proves that at the age of 40, she is aging not only gracefully and naturally, but with all her sexiness and innate talents in tact.

While the film goes through the predictable motions in its final act, it's the gooey goodness of the middle portion (especially one laugh-out-loud montage of Leoni helping Kingsley train for his return to "work") that will leave a smile on your face, with Leoni's luminosity as a comedic actress scorched into your mind.

You Kill Me is a cute entertainment. John Dahl, whose atmospheric noir thrillers Kill Me Again, Unforgettable and The Last Seduction fascinated me with their coziness and whose Rounders absorbs me to watch it repeatedly and never grow tired of it, directs a film that, despite not bearing the familiar climate his other films have, still has that tucked up warmth that they all have, even his lesser ones like Red Rock West.

This movie has a very dry sense of humor that works even when it isn't a punchline, which makes it consistent. For instance, Ben Kingsley, a Polish hit man who is sent to an AA in San Francisco, nonchalantly and laconically tells the group that he is a hired killer and that his goal is to overcome his drinking problem so he can return to being a competent murderer. The group, as dry and morbidly apathetic as he is, simply applaud him and welcome him with support, which very much taps into my own personal sense of black humor.

Dahl's early noirs always had a similar sense of humor that never detracted from their darkness or their moodiness or their seamless noir home video or late-night movie-going feel. However, You Kill Me is a straight comedy yet it has the same degree of black tongue-in-cheekness, thus it isn't a gem like the others. You Kill Me is a light amusement that one enjoys and passes. Dahl's direction is tight and laid back and the story is very preoccupying.

There's a sleepiness to this movie. The cast is very secure and likable, especially Kingsley and Dennis Farina, who returns to the gangster comedy like a highly anticipated guest at a reunion. Even before the gorgeous San Francisco locale, the Buffalo, NY bookends are very gladdening and infused well. We don't often get movies that showcase organized crime in smaller cities, much less the scant Polish mob. You Kill Me is not electric. It's a movie to watch curled up in bed at night or in the morning to get lost in. And it's done by one of the best craftsmen of that plain-and-simple family of cinema.

Hollywood loves assassins. You can't go more than a few weeks without a new hit-man movie hitting (sorry) the multiplexes. Hell, later this year, there's a movie coming out literally called "Hitman".

The new trend seems to be putting comedic twists on the assassin film. I guess we can thank Tarantino for that. Within the past few years, stuff like "Mr.& Mrs. Smith", "The Whole Nine Yards", "The Matador", "Grosse Pointe Blank", and "Lucky Number Slevin" gave us clever little plays on the assassin genre. If you're at all familiar with those films, you'll feel right at home with "You Kill Me".

Ben Kingsley plays Frank Falenczyk, a hit-man for the Polish Mob out of Buffalo, New York. Frank's an alcoholic, and recently it's been affecting his work. As a result, his superiors send him to San Francisco to attend Alcoholics Anonymous until he can sober up.

The movie doesn't win any points for originality, but it does have a lot to offer. Kingsley puts on a capable, sympathetic show - pretty impressive for a guy who spends the majority of the film getting hammered. Téa Leoni does well enough as the obligatory love interest. The age difference took a little getting used to. Dennis Farina and Philip Baker Hall are a treat to watch playing essentially the same roles they've been playing forever. Hall is the soft spoken head of the Polish Mob Family, while Farina is the loudmouth villain heading up the Italians. Bill Pullman also has a small role as a sleazy real estate agent. Anyone who's seen "Lucky Numbers" knows that Pullman has a talent for quirky lowlifes, and he shines here.

This is a very light movie. It won't blow you away in any regards, but it is a solid 90 minutes of easy entertainment. The script is essentially Frank's struggle to fight his habit. We also get a light love story and a touch of crime thriller. It's a strange juggling act, but Kingsley and director John Dahl pull it off. Don't get discouraged by the bland name. With just enough laughs, drama, and action – this is a small movie than just about anybody can have fun with.

Frank Falenczyk (Ben Kingsley) is a hit-man for the Polish mob in Buffalo but the drinking is getting in the way. He is forced to sober up in San Francisco. Tom (Luke Wilson) is his sponsor from AA, and he gets a mortician job. He falls for Laurel Pearson (Téa Leoni) who loves older men because they're done testing.

Ben Kingsley is going deadpan acting in this one. He's especially proud of the precision in his killings. It's not the killing that he regrets. It's the lack of professionalism when he was drinking. It's a quirky character. He, Leoni, and Wilson are all likable people. They talk about the craziest things nonchalantly. It's a rather low energy affair. It's a quirky and cute cast, but they're not necessarily laugh out loud funny. Kingsley is too calm. He needs to play up the wackiness.

Quite uneven and rather heavy treatment of some topics meant to be amusing, but still, a pleasant change of pace from slasher or crasher movies. Kingsley is a drunken mobster somewhat unconvincingly told to attend AA by his godfather or boss or whatever.

In the end, this is the sort of pleasing yet non-filling confection of a movie which is suitable for couple to go to without compromise - or perhaps it's the perfect compromise.

It has enough guys running around with firearms to suit the men. It has Tea Leoni as a strange beautiful woman so there's some romance for the women. It has Ben Kingsley who looks 40 years older than Leoni involved in a romance with her which should satisfy something in most people, even if I'm unsure what.

Like most movies today, this one demands a huge suspension of disbelief not only about the gangster snow plow wars of Buffalo, but why Chinese want in on a piece of that action, how mobsters care for each other and if some homely old grunt can really get and hold a very hot Hollywood star girl.

Still, I'll take it over the current clash or crash offerings.