A sturdy cast toplined by the always watchable Frank Grillo and agile close quarters combat choreography cannot redeem "Underworld" writer & director Kevin Grevioux's loquacious and lethargic opus "King of Killers" from the doldrums that stretches itself far too thin at 87 minutes. Ostensibly, Marcus Garan (Alain Moussi of "Kickboxer: Retaliation") is the protagonist, and Grevioux aligns our sympathy for him because not only does his pretty wife get riddled with bullets but also his precious daughter is stricken by a heart ailment that dictates she have a transplant. Roman Korea (Gianni Capaldi of "River Runs Red") dangles an offer that none of the several assassins he enlists to kill his boss Jorg Drakos (Frank Grillo of "Captain America: The Winter Soldier") can refuse. The ultra-arrogant Drakos attracts these killers, one of whom is a lady, with the promise of a $10-million payday if any of them can put him in his grave. Casting boils down to getting some craggy guys and a girl that you wouldn't survive in a back alley brawl. The predictable action thriller suffers from too much talking, and the surprises are few and far between. The final half-hour finds these combatants clashing in life and death encounters. Grevioux casts himself as one of the Hitman's who assemble to kill Drakos. "King of Killers" lacks a compelling narrative and seems inspired by the "John Wick" movies and "Assassin Club." Tidbits like the history of the word 'assassin' enliven this shallow potboiler but nobody should put themselves through this lackluster drudgery. A far-fetched last minute twist unravels everything in "King of Killers" and reprieves the sole surviving characters for a sequel. Indeed, the mystery of our hero's wife's demise is resolved, but these two reversals are sour grapes after what we have been put through a wringer to watch.
Review of King of Killers
