A gyilkos járat

Rather than Tarantino, this is closer to a shabby Ritchie, unfortunately after a slight lobotomy. Too bad about the dumb explanation at the end, too bad about the repetitive dialogues between Tangerine and Lemon, which often weren't actually very funny, even though they tried to be very cool. Ritchie wouldn’t make those mistakes. But, given the director's name, you shouldn’t expect a new John Wick, the full-contact fights don't have that much juice and idea, and I could certainly do without the overdone conclusion with the shinkansen, where I just expected Tom and Jerry to come out of somewhere and start hitting each other with frying pans. But otherwise, the story was brilliantly conceived, it had a surprising twist, it all made sense by the end, and some of the scenes were so incredibly absurd and absurdly plotted that they were actually fine. Interesting postmodernism, which I wouldn't expect from a former stuntman. Of the actors, Aaron Taylor-Johnson shone the brightest, he's walking masculinity with acting talent. (2022.08.22)

Ladybug is an assassin in need of an easy job, so she boards a Japanese express train to find and steal a seemingly ordinary suitcase. Little does she know she's walking into a trap. There are more killers on the train, and soon blood is flowing. David Leitch delivers a very wild action comedy which, apart from the great action, offers an interesting and above all very attractively told story that alternates humour with drama and lots of crazy twists. Bullet Train is reminiscent of Guy Ritchie's gangster movies peppered with lots of shootings and fights. And although it loses a bit of pace towards the end, it's definitely worth getting on this train. (2022.08.04)

David Leitch and an incredibly awesome ride. I was really looking forward to Bullet Train from the first announcement, it's right down my alley, but my expectations were even exceeded. Leitch hasn't just made a straightforward action ride this time, he's taken something from Tarantino and something from Ritchie, and together he mixed a genre-complex cocktail, one that reminds me of my favorite Kingsman, which the film comes damn close to in its stylishness, over-the-top intelligence, and fierce nature. Brad Pitt is a great choice, and as he's winding down his career, he's picked a terrific film for one of his final projects. He is a hired assassin suffering from bad luck, a very interesting element itself. He is tasked with stealing a briefcase on the world's fastest train, the Shinkanzen – the modern setting of the train itself is also a great asset to the film. But there are other dangerous people on the train, each with different but similar intentions, and their clash is royal fun. Bullet Train has incredible style, insane pacing, well-dosed black humor, a bunch of crazy but original and clever ideas, great actors – every single character here has plenty of room to show off and most of the time has a very impressive flashback background, which I appreciate, and the viewer can form a relationship, both the good and the bad, with each character. The soundtrack is also good, there are a couple of unexpected cameos that are meta. Plot-wise, the film is unexpectedly mature, there are a bunch of solid twists and turns, each better than the previous one; the whole thing is incredibly cleverly interwoven and everything fits together nicely in the end – I have a soft spot for this kind of stuff and on top of that there's great fun R-rated action – the finale is pretty brutal (a train derailment scene that even Emmerich would approve). The last time I had this much fun was with Suicide Squad and Kingsman, all three films have R-rating, proper fun and tremendous style in common. I look forward to going again. Ps: I was really blown away by the water bottle scene – which has its own story here!!! Story 5/5. Action 5/5, Humor 4/5, Violence 4/5, Fun 5/5 Music 4/5, Visuals 5/5, Atmosphere 4/5, Suspense 4/5, Emotion 4/5, Actors 5/5. 10/10. (2022.08.07)

I expected a wild and exhilarating ride, but the result is even more frenetic in the cadence of ideas than my boldest imaginations. Whoever says that there is a lack of action must have confused platforms and boarded a train towards Stará Paka. In this Shinkansen, beloved narrative sources and styles alternate, where Kill Bill shakes hands with the more successful work of Guy Ritchie, while insane twists intertwine with absurd bloody splatters reminiscent of the old undertakings by Joel and Ethan Coen. In the end, at several points, I almost raised my hands to applaud with enthusiasm, as certain moments evoked a great euphoria in me thanks to a perfectly fitting cameo or the perfectly fitting soundtrack. The highest rating didn't come at first simply because it is a mix of genres that relies more on inspirations and quotations than on its own contribution, but it doesn't detract from the entertainment value at all, quite the opposite. (2022.08.09)

Bullet Train can be criticised for a lot of things, but it can also be enjoyed for the same reasons. Here we have Japan literally on a high-speed train together with a furious pace and non-linear narrative that rather serves to divert the viewer’s attention and mask the screenplay’s shortcomings, as well as the simulation of depth and reach typical of the source material’s author, Kōtarō Isaka. Unlike Japanese adaptations of Isaka’s novels, here the motifs of interconnectedness, luck and fate do not evoke wonder and pathos, but are ground down into superficially entertaining attractions. Bullet Train also works with Tarantino-esque characters, i.e. absolutely unrealistic genre characters that stand out due to their exaggeration, stylishness and grounding in pop culture. Based on the described principle, Tarantino and some of his disciples create sophisticated, powerful and seemingly well-thought-out gangsters and killers that, in the best case, transcend the level of the wet dream of fictional perfection and become semi-divine ideals that viewers admire. In Bullet Train, however, they just remain unrealistic, amusing puppets with one cartoonishly exaggerated and endlessly repeated attribute. Then we have the action scenes, or rather their choreography, which was at the forefront in previous 87North (or 87Eleven) productions, drawing attention to itself through spectacular physicality, difficulty of execution and revolutionary ingenuity. This time, the action is rather in the background, always primarily in the form of slapstick gags connecting the individual plot sequences. Whatever overarching term we use for the film’s described tendencies –  bastardisation, anti-sophistication, dumbing-down, assimilation or Hollywoodisation – this is what gives Bullet Train its charm and effectiveness. The film absorbed into itself every possible trend of previous years and even decades that had been valued by overly clever fans, cinephiles and devotees of alternative niches, and strained them through the mainstream filter to create a universally accessible form. It will inevitably be derided by the elites because it is not like the perfect forms that they appreciate, but it will make Bullet Train a popular box-office hit. After Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw, Leitch’s subsequent project evokes the middle-of-the-road works of Hong Kong cinema’s golden era, which comprised chaotically disparate variety shows blending together a multitude of emotions and genre positions, and where the audience’s attention was constantly drawn to various attractions, including action escapades and cameo appearances by popular stars. If we recall that David Leitch and his contemporaries are great admirers of Hong Kong movies, it’s possible to see this not as a coincidence, but as a concept. (2022.08.12)

For me, Bullet Train will go down as the film that, at least for a while, shattered my belief that Hollywood just isn't for me anymore and that quality films are only made elsewhere. It was really nice to go home fully satisfied by this action-packed ride, which also had me laughing unexpectedly. Even though I love the shinkansen, I freely admit that after seeing the trailer it took me a while to convince myself to go and I even tried changing the choice of movie while buying my ticket. Gee, how glad I am my fellow moviegoers insisted. A brisk, funny, charismatic, suspenseful, eye-catching film. And even a samurai turned up... I couldn’t ask for more. (2022.08.11)

This will be an evergreen. This loud-mouthed and extremely entertaining Guy Ritchie-style gangster comedy combines with inventive Wick-style action with OTT humor. This time Leitch shows his best, not just as a great action director, but also as a good storyteller who doesn’t forget the point and somebody capable of alternating genres very naturally. The cast is wonderful. Pitt is clearly enjoying himself immensely as Ladybug, but Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s Tangerine does his best at hogging the spotlight. Bullet Train is a potential cult movie which has come under greater scrutiny and been played at movie theaters only thanks to Brad Pitt’s aura. Thanks for that, Brad! (2022.08.04)

Overblown, epileptic postmodernism, or when the director of the most imaginative American action films of the last decade takes on a script that he wants to make into something more than action. The mix of Ritchie, Tarantino and Japanese culture can be seen at every turn, but it works at about half speed. (2022.10.02)

Overly verbose, long and overly complicated mess... Unbelievable even in the context of wacky comedies. It's nothing like a Guy Ritchie movie, though it wants to be, and it's a shame, mostly because of the impeccable cast, the good directorial ideas, and some really unexpected and funny moments that didn't go to waste or get lost in all that mess. (2022.09.20)

Bullet Train is a good action flick without much ambition, where the disparate cast of peculiar characters have fun and Brad Pitt in particular pulls it off well with his "substitute". Just the reveal of both the main villain and his motivations was like something out of a movie, like, three quality levels down. It's a bit too cluttered and unfocused at times with the exuberant wannabe cool style and numerous flashbacks, but that was probably the intention, and what the hell, it's entertaining anyway. (2022.08.08)

Bullet Train is indeed a brisk and bloody actioner that benefits from a solid premise and an excellent cast. The driving force of the whole film is of course Brad Pitt, brilliantly seconded by Brian Tyree Henry. If you like a narrative style with plenty of flashbacks, over-the-top action that takes liberties with the laws of physics (which would have been lost in Leitch's Deadpool 2), and at times unnecessarily chatty and self-absorbed characters, you will certainly enjoy this lightning-fast ride on the Shinkansen. Personally, I was at times bothered by the bombastic banter and the pushing of the (black) humour envelope, but otherwise I really enjoyed Bullet Train. Last but not least, I loved the hilarious cameos of several familiar faces. PS: was it my imagination, or did the film blatantly refers to Se7en in more than one scene? (2022.08.11)

TV series visuals, impotent record-scratch humor, and a tortured attempt at instant Japanese weirdness logically results in the most desperate train journey since the legendary Slovak Express. The film Bad Times at the El Royale often popped into my mind – for that too was an attempt at a Tarantino-esque screenplay with distinctive characters that failed on the grounds that, like here, it was written by a man who has spent most of his adult life in the back of an Uber somewhere scrolling through Instagram and doesn't know shit about how people work. (2022.08.11)

I like how the title has a double layer to it. I was excited to see the movie, and now I'm disappointed. I soon began to feel that the creators were trying to imitate Quentin Tarantino's style. Badly. Don't get me wrong, when it comes to ripping off his ideas, they succeeded. They even managed to find a fake Vincent Vega and Jules Winnfield. While Lemon didn't draw quotes from the Bible (probably not to offend believers, non-believers, and heretics), but from Thomas the Tank Engine, and I think we can all be glad that it didn't come to Teletubbies or Harry Potter. There was even a female villain, but unlike those in Tarantino's films, this one didn't have a cute, innocent face. Instead, it was that murderous monster that had recently brutally depopulated an unnamed tower. And her face made it clear to everyone that she was happy to do it again. Despite all the negatives mentioned so far, I was entertained, sometimes almost against my will. The action scenes were well-executed and even funny at times. For example, the assisted suicide of that South American cop made me laugh out loud; it was like in Tucker & Dale vs. Evil. If the creators hadn't blatantly ripped off Tarantino and used more of their inventiveness, my rating would have been more generous. / Lesson learned: Before traveling by train, get properly vaccinated. 3*+. (2023.01.24)

Colourful entertainment sometimes with over-the-top CGI tricks, probably aimed at 3D screening. Bit chaotic in the beginning, but one gets into the story soon. Quite funny, but the story is quite generic. I apreciated the fun cameos and colourfully shot characters' backstories. I had fun the majority of time, so it's good in my opinion. (2023.06.15)

David Leitch has managed to mix up a fresh and very likable action movie whose formal flourishes and novelties are right at the edge of feeling annoying and self-indulgent. It's still mannerist as hell, but it all happens within a coherent story that builds quite well. It's not just another mindless parade of fights and brutality (although both are there in spades, and it works), because it feels much more like a strong auteur film. [80%] (2022.08.04)

At very least the first half of the movie has the right momentum, swing and very decent action scenes. At times there are some funny moments, but as time goes on, some jokes start to repeat themselves and the plot more or less stagnates. Still, it's probably the best attempt at directing from David Leitch that I've seen so far. I mustn't forget the soundtrack, which gives it all the right amount of oomph. The casting was also spot on, of which, apart from the traditionally great Brad Pitt, I was most impressed by Brian Tyree Henry, who clearly demonstrated here that he has significant comedic talent. (65%) (2023.04.20)