Five assassins aboard a fast-moving bullet train find out their missions have something in common.
The premise for “Bullet Train” is very straightforward: five different assassins find themselves aboard a bullet train in Tokyo, all vying for the same item; a silver briefcase, its contents unknown until later in the story. Naturally, they all run into each other, and chaos ensues, but this is one train ride you won’t want to miss.
Brad Pitt plays Ladybug, an assassin with a conflict of interest. After years of killing people, he wants to leave that life behind, focusing more on his spiritual and physical well-being. He is called out of retirement by his contact, Maria Beetle (Sandra Bullock), who offers him a job that only requires him to locate and retrieve a briefcase on a bullet train in Tokyo and return it intact. Simple. After discovering the briefcase on a luggage rack, he retreats to the nearest exit and waits to disembark at the next station.
The Wolf (Benito A Martínez Ocasio) is a Mexican assassin whose wife and entire family were poisoned to death on their wedding day by a mysterious assailant who the White Death, the leader of the largest criminal organization in Japan, claims is on board. With vengeance in his heart, The Wolf intends to kill the assassin who took the life of his wife and family and retrieve the briefcase, too.
Tangerine and Lemon (Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Brian Tyree Henry), an English duo of hitmen who have been best friends since childhood, have been tasked with safely bringing home the son of the White Death. When he calls them and informs them about the briefcase and that they are to regain possession of it any way they can, they leave his son handcuffed to a seat while they head off to track down the briefcase. Unable to do so, they return to their seats only to find him dead.
In another car, Yuichi Kimura (Andrew Koji), a Japanese assassin whose young son almost lost his life due to his negligence, must prove himself as a good father by tracking down the briefcase and returning it to his father, known as The Elder (Hiroyuki Sanada), an assassin who has been waiting a long time to come face to face with the White Death for his decades-old betrayal.
Finally, we meet Prince (Joey King), a young English schoolgirl who appears naive and innocent but quickly proves she is more than meets the eye. She wants the briefcase for her own nefarious needs and will stop at nothing to get what she wants.
And so the stage is set. The train is put in motion, the characters are pitted against each other, and the outcome will be contingent upon the strongest, the fastest, and the luckiest!
“Bullet Train” moves at breakneck speed, allowing you little time to breathe once the action begins. When Ladybug first takes on his assignment, he is puzzled as to why his contact, Maria, gave him that nickname. She states that in Japan, ladybugs are symbols of good luck, and boy, oh boy, does his moniker actually work. Ladybug never once deliberately kills anybody; they die accidentally, a ricocheting knife, a fortuitous gunshot, or an unintended syringe jab that will culminate in somebody else’s demise later on; Ladybug appears to have lady luck on his side.
The ensemble cast is excellent throughout, every actor is perfect, and it is virtually impossible to imagine anybody else in each respective role. Brad Pitt appears to be having fun and, much like his blink-and-you’ll-miss-it cameo in “Deadpool 2,” manages to snag several A-list stars in brief-but-hilarious cameos. Director David Leitch, who previously helmed “John Wick,” “Atomic Blonde,” “Deadpool 2,” and “Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw,” revs up the action, which, I might add, all takes place in one location, on the titular bullet train speeding through Tokyo. At first, there are many intertwining plots and subplots that seem to go nowhere, but when we reach the movie’s finale, everything comes into focus, and the payoff is worth the wait.
“Bullet Train” is engaging, funny, and, at times, filled with breathtaking action set-pieces. While the overall narrative occasionally slips into unoriginal territory, director David Leitch’s take on it and his use of non-linear storytelling reaffirms its weaknesses and enhances its strengths. In other words, it never takes itself too seriously, which is good because some of the action is so over-the-top that if the story were too severe and contemplative, none of it would have worked. If you want to escape for a few hours, sit back and board the “Bullet Train,” you won’t want to get off.
Now available on Digital HD and on 4K Ultra HD™, Blu-ray™, & DVD October 18th
