Review: It was wild action and a witty cast that made Bullet Train #1 with part of its title

I’ve had plenty of times where I’ve been at odds with critics on a film’s merits, and Bullet Train (directed by David Leitch) is another one. Yes, there are conveniences in the storyline. Yes, it’s a crude, excessively bloody cartoon. Maybe I’m being a bit forgiving here, but I was fine looking past those flaws because of how stylized the direction was and the intensity of the performances here.

Sometimes all an action film needs to be is fun, and that’s this movie’s primary goal. Oddly enough, this was originally an Antoine Fuqua-led project (he’s still a co-producer) and was intended to be a lot more serious before the script shifted to something wackier. Honestly, I think we’re in a better timeline.

Our central character is Ladybug, played by Brad Pitt as a bad luck-prone hitman in Japan who’s picking up a mysterious briefcase off the titular bullet train. He’s got no clue about the contents, only his monetary value and that it’s attracted the attention of two assassins brothers, Lemon and Tangerine (Brian Tyree Henry and Aaron-Taylor Johnson).

They’re after both the case and the son of a Yakuza boss only known as “White Death” (Michael Shannon) who’s hired the fruit-named siblings to retrieve them. Ladybug’s ill fortunes also run him afoul of Yuichi (Andrew Koji) and his former mob boss father (Hiroyuki Sanada), and their conflicts with a young girl named the Prince (Joey King) who’s playing a chess game in order to get close to and kill off White Death.

If that wasn’t enough, Ladybug’s being pursued by The Wolf (Bad Bunny), a drug lord who makes Mr. Wolf from Bad Guys look like a pup in comparison and wants Pitt’s head for ruining his wedding. Not to mention that Momomon, the cuddly mascot with their own car train, seems very suspicious and up to no good. Blood, lead bullets and references to Thomas the Tank Engine, of which Lemon is obsessed with referencing at the most inappropriate times, follow in a great capacity.

Though Pitt as Ladybug is quite engaging, more than likely it’s Lemon and Tangerine that I predict will wind up being dark horse standout favorite characters for much of the audience. The duo offer both humor and poignancy to the story while also successfully blending themselves with the rising tension occurring.

Leitch’s direction is very comic book-like as usual, showing off his trademark flair that can be seen in works like John Wick, Deadpool and Atomic Blonde. This guy’s come a long way from playing an unconvincing Terry Bogard in that insanely bad King of Fighters movie. (And I won’t lie, some of the characters in this movie could also serve as SNK characters in their own right.)

Regarding the Tarantino comparisons, to me that’s mostly in the profane and pop culture-laden banter crossed with over-the-top violence. This film doesn’t have much in the way of Quentin’s innuendos or political incorrectness, but stylistically you can see a few similarities in how these repellant scoundrel characters become endearing to the audience in a sort of Reservoir Dogs-ish manner.

Some have said they felt the story sort of went all over the place, but to tell the truth, I didn’t find this too convoluted. I could understand it more if there wasn’t that sense the story was building to something major, because for me it was. Michael Shannon as White Death feels almost like the final boss of a video game in how the scope of his power is revealed as the train’s moving. He’s part of a diverse cast who all get individual moments to shine, and his connections to the Prince make Joey King’s well ranged performance work great in the revealed context.

So long as you’re not coming in expecting some profound work of art and don’t mind your adventure stories being a bit bonkers now and then, Bullet Train might be what you’re looking for. I wouldn’t call it something that will appeal to everyone given how down-bad many of our “heroes” are in this movie, but It’s a rip-snorting good time within a nice B-movie vein. but what was your opinion on it? If you’ve caught this train, let us know how your ride was at FAN’s spots on Twitter and Facebook as always!