If you think do The morning commute seems dangerous, don’t think about it at Brad Pitt Ladybug in action comedy 2022 Bullet Train. Currently sliding up the Hulu charts, the film takes the world of assassins and puts it on high-speed rails, as a colorful cast of familiar faces battle it out in the vehicles in David Leitch a smart, neat change to it Isaacand the book 2010. With a kinetic action that awakens the John Wick franchise, and multi-character mystery that deserves it Agatha Christie Massacre on the Orient Expressit has been a sleeper hit for action fans.
‘Bullet Train’ is a fast paced Battle Royale
Brad Pitt stars as Ladybug, an assassin with a reputation for being a bad luck charm for everyone around him. Drafted in by its handler (Sandra Bullock) as a last-minute substitute on a job, boards a bullet train leaving Tokyo with the goal of retrieving a suitcase. His hopes for a quiet ride are dashed when he discovers that the vehicle is full of other killers, all with intertwined motives and orders. What starts out as a routine job becomes a chain reaction of mistaken identity and a fate-driven twist which connects the destinations of each traveler together.
Playing out like a video game come to life, the film lights up the screen with a knowing wink and self-referential humor. Each vehicle, and each stop offers a new ‘level’, with the enjoyment coming in the mix of wild encounters and twists in the story. There’s never time to be bored when a new challenger comes to meet Ladybug, who usually greets them with a weary sigh. Although he may not be happy to see them, he offers one of the most diverse and interesting casts in modern memory.
An All-Star Cast makes for a hilarious adventure
It feels like every seat on Leitch’s fast-paced ride has a character that deserves a movie of its own, played by an actor who makes the most of every moment. Tangerine and Lemon English Assassins (Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Bryan Tiree Henry), Prince (Joey King), a young woman who is influenced as a schoolgirl, patriarch Elder (Hiroyuki Sanada), and criminal kingpin The White Death, played with menace by Michael Shannon.
Some may think that makes for an overcrowded train, but the ensemble offers a tonal spread that keeps the viewer interested. Taylor-Johnson and Henry feel ripped straight from a buddy comedy, while King adds a twist of mystery that belongs in a newspaper thriller. Sanada brings gravity and seriousness to the proceedings, while Shannon acts as puppet master, manipulating everyone who comes aboard. Each character moves the energy within the vehicle, making for a story made of very different chapters. There is a ceremony of familiar faces that appear small but important, such as a rapper Bad Bunny and a Marvel star Zazie Beetz. It’s the ability to bring individual tastes, and problems, to transactions that makes it all the more compelling to untangle the web.
Brad Pitt continues his recovery later in his career
At the center of it all, of course, is Pitt, as the protagonist who is unwilling to treat every duel that threatens life as an inconvenience. His fairy assassin is somewhat antagonistic, and watching Ladybug’s reluctance to dispose of her opponents (even when it means her survival) is a constant highlight of the film. It’s also a special chapter in his late renaissance, as Pitt heads into his sixties with an Oscar and a desire to do interesting work.
After spending much of the early part of his career as a Hollywood actor, age has suited the actor who always running various different positions. In the late fifties and early sixties, that meant creating truly iconic shows; he won his first Academy Award three years earlier as Cliff Booth, the cool and mysterious right-hand man of Leonardo DiCaprio in Once in Hollywood. Although Ladybug may not have that role, Bullet Train is another example of the actor’s charisma shining through as he becomes less of a matinée idol and more of a pulp hero. It also allows him to be funny in a way that wasn’t possible when he was an up-and-coming leading man.
Four years after his release, Bullet Train still a new and exciting film with Hollywood favorites at every turn and momentum that does not let until the story reaches its climax. If you’ve ever wondered why Pitt is still a superstar at an age when most are looking toward retirement, look no further than this particular cinematic obstacle course.
- Release date
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August 5, 2022
- Running time
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126 minutes