Director Philippe Lacôte expands upon a short story by crime novelist Jo Nesbø in Killer Heat, which follows a troubled private detective (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) who is flown in to Greece from the U.S. to investigate a potential murder. He quickly targets the victim’s twin brother (Richard Madden) as the primary suspect. (97 min.)
Caleb: Dismissed as an accident by local police, a rock climber’s death in a small coastal village prompts the arrival of an outsider private eye in Killer Heat, a new noir mystery that quickly nosedives into snooze-button territory despite its strong opening and promising premise. After her brother-in-law’s body is found at the bottom of a rock face in Greece, Penelope Vardakis (Shailene Woodley) senses foul play with one suspect in mind: her own husband, Elias Vardakis (Richard Madden). He and the deceased, Leo (also Madden), were identical twins who’d been entangled in a love triangle years prior, Penelope reveals to Nick Bali (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), an American private detective she dispatches from New York in secret. Bali is known as “The Jealousy Man” (the title of Jo Nesbø’s short story that Killer Heat is adapted from) because of his penchant for getting into the heads of murderers who kill out of envy. Often sporting sunglasses and a Chinatown fedora, Gordon-Levitt seems to have a lot of fun with the role, and I can easily imagine being won over by a future film centered on Bali’s seedy exploits, as long as it’s got more oomph than Killer Heat. It’s a mostly bland mixed bag. Even its luxurious island setting and yacht core appeal can’t save it from missing the boat.
Bulbul: I’m still recovering from the hour-and-a-half-long eye-roll fest that was Killer Heat. You’re relentlessly hit on the head with ham-fisted dialogue of a ton of Icarus references, warnings not to mess with Greek gods, and stray Greek phrases to underscore Bali’s Greek heritage. Did I mention the movie takes place on a remote Greek island? Well, it does, and Killer Heat never lets you forget it. Bali’s jaded persona tries to be humorous, but his punchlines don’t hit. The movie doesn’t dedicate enough time to his background to make me want to care about or root for him. The New York private eye isn’t eye-catching enough, as Daniel Craig’s enigmatic detective is in Knives Out, nor is his dark past as captivating as butt-kicking Brad Pitt’s role in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. If I were to watch more of Bali on the big screen through more short story adaptations, I’m hoping for an exposition do-over. But my hopes might be flying too close to the sun.
Caleb: I just wish he got to do more, other than mope around the island and meditate on some harsh memories that filled him with the same kind of jealousy he now detects for a living. I never tire of a hardy, brooding protagonist, but I ended up gravitating toward Killer Heat’s playful moments of humor far more than its angsty bits. I enjoyed watching Bali take on a couple of different guises, including that of an insurance claim official, in order to get some info on Leo’s death. During his investigation, Bali eventually butts heads with a rival detective, Georges Mensah, played by Babou Ceesay, who has an adorable canine sidekick. There’s a scene where the three of them (including the dog) collaborate on a late-night stakeout, and it made me wish Killer Heat was a lighthearted buddy comedy instead.
Bulbul: Killer Heat is a good choice for a weeknight stream when you don’t know what to watch with dinner. If you must watch it with friends, I think it would be fun to guess how the killer did it even though it’s pretty predictable. It’s an extremely straightforward plot that the filmmakers try to unnecessarily complicate by interspersing flashbacks of Bali’s past with the present. It’s a light and easy watch for a movie that aims to be dark. It’s shorter than two hours, which means Killer Heat fizzles out before you know it.
New Times Staff Writer Bulbul Rajagopal and Arts Editor Caleb Wiseblood filled in for regular reviewers Glen and Anna Starkey this week. Email your thoughts to [email protected].
