Bounty Killer comes across as a dumbed down Robert Rodriguez film. The problem there is that Robert Rodriguez makes terrible B movies, only with smarts, savvy and ideas that elevate them. So I guess what I am saying is that this is a (not totally) terrible B movie. It definitely does score low on the creativity scale.
In the near future Earth has yet again gone to shit on us. In this all too familiar future white collar criminals (with yellow ties no less!) are now atop every Most Wanted list – which must cause rapists and homicidal ax murderers to breathe a sigh of relief. Now hunting down these sensible shoe wearing, pencil pouched, combed – over Public Enemy #1 type desperadoes is big business, with the heavily armed and infinitely stylish Bounty Killers set to take on the task.
These easily identifiable bounty killers are the rock stars of their day, hounded by fans and reporters for quotes, jobs and autographs. This story follows but two of them, Drifter and Mary Death.
Mary Death has scads of self confidence and a signature style that requires 60s a go-go skirt, white undies and FMBs. Drifter on the other hand has nice stubble…
The plot involves… actually can’t remember, but Drifter and Mary Death navigate from Point A to Point B in this Borderlands video game come to life complete with marauding gypsy gangs, where we learn not only their backstory, but the tedious backstories of way too many other characters, some played by such luminaries as Gary Busey and Kristanna Loken.
The early scenes take place in the one decent location, a Blade Runner-esque nightclub, they are fast, bloody and peppered with stylised flourishes and kitsch filled moments.
These couple minutes are fun and adrenalin fuelled. You wonder momentarily if you have plucked a rare nugget from the ‘new to weekly’ shelf…
Alas these few promise filled minutes cannot last, and the movie settles – like so many others – for a Mad Max lite jaunt through the wastelands, where marauding gypsy gangs roam and competent films come to die.
Things are not helped by the admittedly spunky but instantly forgettable Mary Death, and the neither spunky nor personality owning Drifter. Let’s just say it’s a bad sign when you are only stirred from your stupor by thinking ‘hey that’s Gary Busey’ like that’s somehow a good thing.
Style. Action. Energy. Entertainment. Sex. Bounty Killer has enough of none of these things.
Final Rating – 6 / 10. Give me Rutger Hauer 80s films over this any day.
