Good Kill (2014)

A family man begins to question the ethics of his job as a drone pilot.

Director:

Andrew Niccol

Writer:

Andrew Niccol

Stars:

Ethan Hawke, January Jones, Zoë Kravitz

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Fatima El Bahraouy	...	The Woman (as Fatima El Bahraquy)
El Khttabi Abdelouahab	...	The Boy
Ethan Hawke	...	Major Thomas Egan
Bruce Greenwood	...	Lt. Colonel Jack Johns
Jake Abel	...	M.I.C. Joseph Zimmer
Ryan Montano	...	Airman Roy Carlos
Dylan Kenin	...	Capt. Ed Christie
Stafford Douglas	...	Billy
Zion Rain Leyba	...	Travis Egan (as Zion Leyba)
January Jones	...	Molly Egan
Sachie Capitani	...	Jesse Egan
Michael Sheets	...	Danny
Zoë Kravitz	...	Airman Vera Suarez
Ross Shaw	...	Lt. Drier
Chakir Faiz	...	The Man

Storyline

A Las Vegas-based fighter pilot turned drone pilot fights the Taliban by remote control for 12 hours a day, then goes home to the suburbs and feuds with his wife and kids for the other 12. But the pilot is starting to question the mission. Is he creating more terrorists than he's killing? Is he fighting a war without end.

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Plot Keywords:

drone pilot | taliban | drone attack | collateral damage | moral dilemma | 

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Taglines:

If you never face your enemy, how can you face yourself.

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Genres:

Drama | Thriller | War

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violent content including a rape, language, and some sexuality

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [Japan]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

15 May 2015 (USA)

Also Known As:

Good Kill

Filming Locations:

Morocco

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$17,750, 17 May 2015

Gross USA:

$316,472

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$1,474,471

Company Credits

Production Co:

Voltage Pictures, Dune Films, Dune Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

102 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Bruce Greenwood's character tells the hanger full of new cadets that drone raids are different than first-person shooter video games. Bruce's voice can be heard in the first-person shooter video game, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 (2011).

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Goofs

The Air Combat Command patch worn on the flightsuits is not correct. The actual patch has the blue field on top and the red field on the bottom. Also, the sword on the actual patch is pointed downward.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Tom Egan: Eyes on the Kahili objective. 19:30 hours. Entering surveillance hour four. No sign of target... Non-combatant approaching... Two non-combatants.

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Connections

Featured in Late Night with Seth Meyers: Ethan Hawke/Kumail Nanjiani/Dwight Yoakam/Jeremy Gara (2015)

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Soundtracks

Love Is Won
Written by 'Leah Kessel'
Performed by Lia Ices
Courtesy of Jagjaguwar
By arrangement with Bank Robber Music

User Reviews

Death from above, just one click away

Good kill delivers a striking message with pinpoint accuracy. It deals with a disturbing side of war in all of its unabashed glory. The lead Ethan Hawke is excellent in his description of a man with two contrasting life, one or both of them might seem painfully surreal for him. Script is just as brash as it is refreshing, filled with military jargon and also complex questions. This is not an orthodox war movie, yet it venture farther than most.

Tom Egan (Ethan Hawke) is a drone pilot, fighting war from halfway across the globe. This seemingly non-dangerous job weighs on his mind as his relationships with his wife Molly (January Jones) suffers from the stress. The story pushes harder as the mission is gradually becoming more morally dubious and many lives are at stake. Acting is really solid, Hawke looks just like a seasoned veteran who's been drained by his service.

January Jones as his wife is mostly subtle, but she performs greatly on the more emotional scenes. It's not the normal melodramatic relationship that these two have, there's an effort to create functioning family, yet they are far too detached and distant to each other. Egan's colleagues are also excellent, especially Zoe Kravitz as Suarez, his younger co-pilot who exhibits rare virtue in the line of work and Bruce Greenwod as the commander who is as sympathetic as he is duty bound, who also delivers a mean speech.

Script is amazing, dialogues are powerfully engaging and thought provoking. It showcases suspense despite the pilots are not physically engaged in combat. The brash attitude, smart jab and fervent inquiries are presented elegantly to audiences. However, the constant switch between bird eye view and ordinary cinematography might be jarring and repetitive. While the everyday grind and heavy theme are meant to be exhausting, they can be excessively claustrophobic for the audiences.

Good Kill is not a conventional blockbuster action movie, yet it will generate profound contemplation for its emotionally taxing premise.