Kill Me Three Times

Does the name Simon Pegg sound familiar ? If it does, good for you. If it does not sound familiar, there may be 2 reasons why you never heard this name.

1. You only listen to Ulf Lundells 264 albums, and hope he will tour until he is 126 years old.
2. You are a member of Frälsningsarmen, and you have never seen a tv in your entire life.

I have a feeling that most of you have seen Simon Pegg´s really funny comedies Shaun Of The Dead, Hot Fuzz, i even enjoyed Paul. This british actor and comedian have delivered both on cinema, and also on stage. I am quite sure he will continue to deliver more quality comedies in many years ahead. Last year i went to the cinema to see his latest film The World´s End. A really funny parody of Invasion Of The Body Snatchers, except with robots instead. Together with his sidekick Nick Frost, they have tried so many different combinations, you realise they must be very open minded to try combinations of comedy ingredients. I have noticed that Pegg did a comedy recently titled Hector And The Search For Happiness. Have not seen it yet, but i have decided to write a review on this film also this month, so keep your eyes open. You might have seen Simon in both Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol, and Star Trek Into Darkness. He did manage to deliver a good performance in both films, this also proves he can do characters outside his comfort zome. About 4 months ago, i heard of a new Simon Pegg film called Killed Me Three Times. When the trailer was finally released, i found myself curious to see him do a very different film from his previous work. In the cast i actually found legendary australian actor Bryan Brown, remember the F/X films ? He is still seen in smaller films, especially in Australia, so it is great to see him again. With 2 great actors, and a different genre film from director Kriv Stenders, is this combination just what we needed to improve spring releases, or is the trailer promising too much and leaves us with nothing ?

Charlie Wolfe ( Simon Pegg ) is a professional assassin, who just finished his latest mission. He is contacted to get information on his next job. He is told to kill Alice Taylor ( Alice Braga ), since her husband Jack Taylor ( Callan Mulvey ) wants her dead. At first this seems to be just another mission, but Charlie is about to find out that things are much more complicated than he expected. This journey is not like anything he have ever experienced before.

We have seen Simon Pegg tried different characters before, but this may be his strangest choice ever so far in his career. His character Charlie Wolfe is a combination of Burt Reynolds and Rutger Hauer in Wanted Dead Or Alive. But he does have a very different personality, so in that sence you could say that Charlie is quite odd. Kill Me Three Times is without a doubt the most original film we have seen from Simon Pegg, in a while. There are influences from other films, but that is not a problem. I would probably say that this is a very daring move, to make an australian film , away from the Hollywood studios. It could go either way, become a success, or a flop. But what really matters is actually if the film manage to deliver entertainment. If you don´t like dark humour comedies, this might not be your cup of tea. If you do like this combination, i suggest you give this a try. I found myself enjoying this odd combination, and i could not really predict what was going to happen, and that is always a good sign. Is this one of his better films ? No, not if you compare this with Shaun Of The Dead and Hot Fuzz, then you realise that his british films have delivered on a whole different level. Director Kriv Stenders had an australian box office hit called Red Dog in 2011. I have never seen this family film, so i can´t compare his earlier work as an director. He does manage quite well with Kill Me Three Times, to make it an odd comedy. Most of all i think he did the right thing to cast Simon Pegg, because you can tell he is the best actor in the whole film. This does not mean the other actors don´t deliver, they do, but not on the same level as Simon. His look dressed in complete black, is an easy but effective hitman style. Once Bryan Brown enters, you can feel nostalgia from the early 80´s and the 90´s in the air. The australian landscape looks amazing, and you feel like going there instantly. I am not sure what to compare Kill Me Three Times with, there is a mix of genres here that we all recognize. From an entertainment perspective, i think you will have a good time with this film. I know i did.

Rating: DDD