Killing Them Softly (2012)
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A hitman is hired to clean up the criminal underworld after a botched robbery during a period of intense economic instability.
The story
Set during the 2008 financial crisis and the United States presidential election, the story follows Jackie Cogan, a hitman tasked with managing the fallout of a Mafia-controlled poker game robbery. The heist, carried out by an inexperienced crew, has disrupted the underground criminal economy, causing players to fear violence. Jackie must navigate the demands of a mob lawyer to restore order. While he correctly identifies that the primary target was innocent, he believes a public example must be made to deter street-level thugs from further robberies, leading to a series of calculated and violent actions to stabilize the criminal landscape.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
During the 2008 financial crisis and the 2008 United States presidential election, Johnny "Squirrel" Amato plans to rob a Mafia-controlled private poker game in Boston with the help of Frankie and Russell. They successfully steal $100,000 from Markie Trattman. The robbery causes chaos in the underground criminal economy as players fear violence. A mob lawyer, "The Driver," hires hitman Jackie Cogan to restore order. Although Jackie knows Markie was innocent, he agrees to kill him to set an example. Jackie eventually kills Markie and then moves on to the other three perpetrators: Russell, Frankie, and Squirrel. Jackie initially tries to hire another hitman, Mickey Fallon, but Mickey fails to act. Jackie decides to handle the remaining hits himself. He arrests Mickey, then tracks down Russell (who is arrested for drug possession), and eventually tricks Frankie into driving him to Squirrel. Jackie kills Squirrel with a shotgun and then shoots Frankie in the head without warning. On the night of the presidential election, Jackie meets with Driver to collect his fee while Barack Obama gives his victory speech on television.
- First release year
- 2012
- Runtime (minutes)
- 97
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Andrew Dominik
- Writers
- Andrew Dominik · screenplay
- Cast and characters
- Brad Pitt · Jackie Cogan; Scoot McNairy; Ben Mendelsohn; Richard Jenkins; James Gandolfini; Ray Liotta; Sam Shepard
- Genres
- neo-noir; crime; black comedy; drama; thriller
- Themes
- capitalism; economic crisis; violence
- Tone and mood
- darkly comic; visceral; bleak; stylish
- Premise and plot tags
- crime; hitman; mafia; heist; neo-noir
- Source material / true-story basis
- George V. Higgins's 1974 novel Cogan's Trade
- Reception
- The film received mostly positive reviews, described as a darkly comic, visceral thriller and a cautionary tale on capitalism. It received a 74% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a weighted average of 64 on Metacritic, though it received a rare 'F' grade from CinemaScore audiences.
- Awards and nominations
- Palme d'Or · In Competition · 2012 · Nomination
- Production trivia
- The film's first cut was two-and-a-half hours long.; Brad Pitt agreed to the role via a text message in half an hour.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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