I Hired a Contract Killer (1990)

After fifteen years' service, Henri Boulanger is made redundant from his job. Shocked, he attempts suicide, but can't go through with it, so he hires a contract killer in a seedy bar to ... See full summary »

Director:

Aki Kaurismäki

Writers:

Aki Kaurismäki (story), Aki Kaurismäki (screenplay)

Stars:

Jean-Pierre Léaud, Margi Clarke, Kenneth Colley

1 win & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jean-Pierre Léaud	...	Henri Boulanger
Margi Clarke	...	Margaret
Kenneth Colley	...	Harry the Killer
T.R. Bowen	...	Department Head (as Trevor Bowen)
Imogen Claire	...	Secretary (as Immogen Clare) (as Imogen Clare)
Angela Walsh	...	Landlady
Cyril Epstein	...	Taxi Driver
Nicky Tesco	...	Pete
Charles Cork	...	Al
Michael O'Hagan	...	Harry the Killer's Boss
Tex Axile	...	Barkeeper
Walter Sparrow	...	Hotel Porter
Tony Rohr	...	Frank the Doctor
Joe Strummer	...	Guitar Player / Singer
Peter Graves	...	Jeweller

Storyline

After fifteen years' service, Henri Boulanger is made redundant from his job. Shocked, he attempts suicide, but can't go through with it, so he hires a contract killer in a seedy bar to murder him at some unspecified time in the future. But almost immediately he meets and falls in love with Margaret, a flower-seller, which makes Henri realise that his life has some meaning after all. But when he goes back to the bar to cancel the contract, he finds it has been demolished - and there's no way he can get in touch with the killer...

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Plot Keywords:

loneliness | loner | contract to have oneself murdered | telephone book | 1980s | 

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Taglines:

Lej aldrig yrkesmördare i rivningskåkar! [Never hire a professional killer in a condemned building!]

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

Finland Sweden Germany France UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

12 October 1990 (Finland)

Also Known As:

I Hired a Contract Killer

Filming Locations:

London, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Villealfa Filmproductions, Svenska Filminstitutet (SFI), Finnkino

Technical Specs

Runtime:

79 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film is dedicated to the memory of Michael Powell.

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Quotes

Margaret: [Henri has just spend a night with Margaret] What about now? You still want to die?
Henri Boulanger: No no, not anymore.
Margaret: Because you met me?
Henri Boulanger: Yes, that's made me change my mind.
Margaret: Only because of my blue eyes?
Henri Boulanger: Are they blue?

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Connections

Version of Der Mann, der seinen Mörder sucht (1931)

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Soundtracks

Suffering With The Blues
Joe Strummer and the Astro Physicians

User Reviews

An intelligent crime comedy with an intriguing premise

Over the course of seven movies, Aki Kaurismäki explored various sides of Finnish life and culture, from the inexorably tragic (The Match Factory Girl) to the upright hilarious (Leningrad Cowboys Go America). For his eighth feature film, he decided to try something new: he moved to England, ditched all of his regular actors, cast his all-time idol (New wave star Jean-Pierre Lèaud) in the lead and came up with one of the most brilliant and bizarre comedies of recent years. Well, not that recent, but it's genius, I can assure you.

The story takes place in London, and begins in what seems to be a very boring office (or at least the work is boring). Because of financial difficulties, some employees have to be made redundant. For some other reason, foreigners are the first victims. In other words, Henri Boulanger (Lèaud) is out of the game. Having lost the only thing he really cared for, he thinks there's nothing left for him in life and therefore tries to kill himself. Repeatedly. And with mediocre results (hanging? The rope is tron apart; putting the head in an oven? Gas strike all over the city).

This makes Henri even more miserable. So sad, in fact, that he eventually asks a professional assassin (Kenneth Colley) to do the job. While waiting for his final hour to come, he goes to a pub. And there the unexpected happens: he meets a woman (Margi Clarke), rediscovers the joy of living and changes his mind. Pity the killer won't...

In someone else's hands, this film could have been an absurd, grotesque, unrealistic parody of gangster movies. Kaurismäki, however, keeps it simple and believable, largely thanks to the controlled performances: Colley stays cold and unaffected throughout the whole film, even when he's coughing blood, while Léaud never abandons his everyman role, doing nothing more than occasionally raise an eyebrow when things take unpredicted turns.

The film is almost perfect, weren't it for one factor: Margi Clarke. With all the talented British actresses available, Kaurismäki had to pick an unknown with no charm and a dreadful accent. This slight casting mistake prevents I Hired a Contract Killer from being an undisputed masterwork, but like all the other movies on Kaurismäki's CV, it's still worth your attention.