Genre: Drama, Thriller
Director: Andrew Niccol
Writer: Andrew Niccol
Stars: Ethan Hawke, January Jones, Zoë Kravitz
In the shadowy world of drone warfare, combat unfolds like a video game-only with real lives at stake. After six tours of duty, Air Force pilot Tom Egan (Ethan Hawke) yearns to get back into the cockpit of a real plane, but he now fights the Taliban from an air-conditioned box in the Las Vegas desert. When he and his crew start taking orders directly from the CIA, and the stakes are raised, Egan’s nerves-and his relationship with his wife (Mad Men’s January Jones)-begin to unravel. Revealing the psychological toll drone pilots endure as they are forced to witness the aftermath of their fight against insurgents, Andrew Niccol (Gattaca, Lord of War) directs this riveting insider’s view of 21st-century warfare, in which operatives target enemies from half a world away. (C) IFC Films
Ethan Hawke stars as Air Force pilot Tom Egan who conducts drone strikes on terrorists in the American Homeland. This is a very stark contrast to being able to return home to deal with family / marital strife. The portrayal of the military in Good Kill seems rather realistic, yet I have limited exposure to that world. The idea of drone warfare is an emerging process that is about to be established as normal rather quickly. With political debate surrounding the issue, Good Kill provides the human perspective and ultimate consequences this can have on our troops. (“This ain’t f-cking PlayStation…its flesh and blood,” a commander reminds new recruits.)
Good Kill provides the human perspective and ultimate consequences this can have on our troops.
Even though it was based on a true story, Good Kill wants to say a lot about the current war on terror without saying much at all. It somewhat succeeds but to a rather limited effect. It wants the viewers to follow along and connect th r dots and we won’t be preached to. There’s a funny moment when Hawke’s character is asked by a police office, “How’s the war on terror going? Hawke responds: “Kind of like your war on drugs.” (Zinger!) Of course, the movie is more than just the joke as the drama really settles in.
Good Kill meanders through out the melodrama with some effective and heavy-handed moments with serious dramatic undertones. The fragile human cost is removed from drone operators controlling the robots across the world. Despite the mechanical, by the book operations of a drone, there seems to be the loss of control for the war torn and weary.
I rate Good Kill a 6 out of 10.
