Brad Pitt plays Jackie Cogan, a hired man brought in to fix a mess caused by three small-time criminals who robbed a protected card game. That is the whole engine of Killing Them Softly, and it works better than it sounds.
Andrew Dominik directs and writes the film, adapting George V. Higgins’s 1974 novel Cogan’s Trade. The story unfolds during the 2008 financial crisis and the 2008 United States presidential election, a deliberate choice that gives the crime drama a wider context beyond its narrow scope. Pitt’s Cogan is a cold professional, and the film trusts the audience to sit with his moral logic rather than explain it away.
Trailer, via eOnefilms.
The Hitman’s Job
Frankie, played by Scoot McNairy, and Russell, played by Ben Mendelsohn, rob the game. Russell is a heroin addict who steals purebred dogs to sell in Florida, and his partner is a former business associate who is clearly out of his depth. The robbery succeeds anyway, and the pair escape with about $100,000.
The problem is that the game is run by Markie Trattman, played by Ray Liotta, who has a history of letting his own game get robbed before. The crime syndicate knows who did it, but the hitman and the driver who reports to the group argue over whether Markie should be killed or simply beaten. The driver pushes back strongly, and Jackie reluctantly agrees to the beating route.
“In America you’re on your own.”
A Tight Story, Narrow Scope
What works is the tightness of the plot. The film stays focused on a few rooms, a few conversations, and a few characters, and it never wastes a scene. What doesn’t work is that narrow scope. The 2008 financial crisis is used as background rather than as a driving force, and the film’s themes about trust and betrayal feel smaller than its own tagline suggests they should.
James Gandolfini plays Mickey, Richard Jenkins plays the driver, and Sam Shepard plays Dillon. The supporting cast grounds the story in lived-in detail, even if the film itself never fully commits to its own stakes.
Pitt’s Calm Authority
Pitt carries the film with a quiet, steady presence. His Cogan is not a flashy character, and the film is better for it. The supporting performances are strong across the board, particularly Mendelsohn as Russell, who gives the film some of its most human moments.
A Short Run
At 97 minutes, Killing Them Softly moves fast and cuts away from its own material at times. Some scenes feel rushed, especially the middle stretch where the robbery’s fallout is explained through a series of brief exchanges rather than shown in full. The film trusts its audience to follow the chain of consequences, and that trust pays off more often than not.
A Solid, Limited Achievement
The film is not a great crime picture, but it is a solid one. Its ambition exceeds its execution in places, and its themes feel thinner than its own tagline suggests they should be. Still, the performances hold it together, and the final act lands with weight.
Killing Them Softly is a film best judged on its own terms: a tight, talky crime story with a strong lead performance at its center. It asks the audience to accept its world without fully explaining it, and most viewers will find that exchange worthwhile.
6.4 of 10.
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