The Killer's Game (2024)

Dave Bautista puts a price on his own head, Europe’s hitmen line up to collect, and The Killer’s Game is somehow less fun than that sentence. He plays Joe Flood, a Budapest assassin who falls for a dancer named Maize, gets a grim diagnosis, and books a hit on himself so she can cash in the life insurance. Then his doctor calls back. The test results got swapped. Too late: the hit is live, the bounty keeps climbing, and every killer on the continent wants in. Bautista as a lovestruck softie is a genuinely fresh look. The parade of rival assassins sounds like a party, with Scottish brothers, a dancing hitman and Terry Crews holding out for a bigger payday, but most get one scene and a joke that doesn’t land. Critics came in at 47%, and it made $5.93 million worldwide on a reported $30M. A 4.3 because a great hook gets a lukewarm movie. $7,914 says you ask for a second opinion at your next checkup and actually mean it.

What works: Casting Bautista as a lovestruck romantic is a fun change of pace, and the Budapest setting gives the chases some old-world style.

What doesn’t: The lineup of rival killers is more gimmick than character, and the comedy is tepid when it needs to be wild.

Who it’s for: Bautista fans who want a breezy action comedy on the couch and won’t mind a few duds in the joke department.