A Rom-Com with a Body Count

Killers

Directed By: Robert Luketic

Starring: Ashton Kutcher, Katherine Heigl, & Tom Sellek

I like good romantic comedies, and I'm not naive enough to think that there are many original approaches to the subgenre left. I get so sick of critics saying that a new romantic comedy is cliched, stereotypical, or unoriginal. Of course, they are! There are only so many ways for a couple to meet, fall in love, break up, and then get back together in the last act...and there have been hundreds, if not thousands, of romantic comedies over the years, each trying to stand out from the rest in some way. Frankly, critics' excuses for hating this kind of movie are even more tired than the most worn-out of romantic comedy. But, let's be fair, most new romantic comedies suck, even if you don't account for how much they borrow from previously-made movies. They suck because their screenplays are lifeless, their casts are uninspired, and they are filmed with all the gusto of brick wall. The movies lack inspiration because the filmmakers clearly aren't aiming to make anything more than a stereotypical rom-com; consider it a self-fulfilling prophesy, if you will. And, my friends, making a stereotypical romantic comedy and not caring because you expect to make a stereotypical romantic comedy are two very different things. Take for example, Killers, cliched and relatively by-the numbers, but entertaining and worth-a-watch because the filmmakers dare to have a little fun with the subgenre and to actually try to make a good movie.

Director Robert Luketic returns to a subgenre that he knows quite well. Having already made such good romantic comedies as Legally Blonde, Win a Date with Tad Hamilton!, and last year's R-rated The Ugly Truth, Luketic is back in familiar terrain here, though he must also expand his repertoire to include hints of action (No, I don't count that Jane Fonda vs. Jennifer Lopez slap-down in Monster-in-Law as action). This time around, we are following Spencer and Jen (Ashton Kutcher and Katherine Heigl, respectively). He is a former assassin who left the business when he found love and she is blissfully unaware of that fact...until Spencer's former boss unsuccessfully tries to reenlist his aid and, suddenly, a $20 million bounty is placed on his head. Then, it becomes a race for survival - and, of course, a war to save their marriage - as all of their friends, neighbors, and associates turn out to be brutal hitmen, hired to take them out. Who hired these people? Why do they want Spencer dead? Will Spencer be able to salvage his romance with Jen before the end credits roll? Well, okay, you probably can guess the answer to that last one, but who cares? I was just trying to build suspense.

The fun part of Killers is really trying to figure out who is an assassin and who isn't. Here's a clue: most of them are, but I welcomed the unrepentant zaniness of scenes, like when a neighbor is driving by and waving in her cherry red Mustang and then...bam, she is zooming at them with a bloodthirsty look in her eye. These scenes work because of an unusually strong supporting cast. Tom Selleck and Catherine O'Hara, playing Jen's parents, are the stand-outs. O'Hara, especially, aces her role as a charming, but continuously drunk housewife. People like Casey Wilson, Alex Borstein, and Kevin Sussman are comedic heavyweights, and Killers doesn't merely shuffle them off into background parts. Though their scenes are often short, they are given plenty to do, each bringing a unique sense of entertainment to the proceedings. Ashton Kutcher and Katherine Heigl, the primary focus of the movie, are not totally bereft of laughs, however...quite the contrary, actually. Kutcher is finally stepping into leading man territory, playing a more mature role than expected in a movie that could have easily ripped him right back to his Punk'd days. Heigl, as she did in The Ugly Truth, once again proves that she has excellent comedic timing and the potential to become a new Sandra Bullock, a rom-com veteran with a very welcome comedic twist.

I liked Killers. I liked it, despite the fact that it is about as dumb as a box of rocks. I liked it, because it takes the traditional rom-com formula and injects it with plenty of humor, well-crafted action scenes, and a charismatic cast. I appreciated its willingness to be wacky and off-the-wall, never taking itself too seriously. Let's face it, guys, we are probably never going to see a truly original and groundbreaking romantic comedy ever again. Too many have been made and too many of these stories have been told. Though many critics bemoaned the fact that they were not given free advanced screenings of Killers, I actually found it to be quite smart. Critics shouldn't be allowed to watch and review these kinds of movies. They are just wasting their time, as they are bound to hate them. Plus, writing so many negative reviews about movies I suspect many women love just continues to show how detached critics are from popular tastes, thus further proving how unnecessary they are in the eyes of many people. Oh well, I've tried to warn them. Now, that doesn't mean that romantic comedies should just automatically get a pass, but they must be graded on different criteria than other movies. Killers, so funny and undeniably charming, gets a pass because it is entertaining and appealing, despite the abundant cliches. Women will love the sweet chemistry between Kutcher and Heigl, while men might found themselves surprised at how much they enjoy the movie's distinctly man-friendly action.