#REVIEW: “BOY KILLS WORLD”

Review by Amanda Gilmore for Mr. Will Wong

Bill Skarsgård leads this entertaining non-stop action flick about revenge.

It’s set in a totalitarian world led by Hilda Van Der Koy (Famke Janssen). Hilda holds public executions of her enemies to keep her people in line. But it’s been a long time since she’s attended these killings herself. She’s been in hiding for years. When Boy (Skarsgård) was young, his family was part of a public execution. However, his life was saved by a mysterious Shaman(Yayan Ruhian). The two have lived in the woods just outside the city ever since. The Shamanhas trained Boy to become a fighter. Now an adult, Boy is ready to fight any enemy and he’s heard information about where Hilda is located. He sets out on a quest to kill Hilda and those responsible for his family’s murder.

Director Moritz Mohr has crafted a wild ride from beginning to end. The audience experiences a fever dream of bloody action sequences loaded with quirky humour. Skarsgård has fully transformed in this role to show that his body could really be a weapon. It’s a demanding physical role that he excels in. These action scenes are precisely edited and the sound is mixed so the audience is always able to see and hear each hit, cut, smash, bang and blood splatter.

A lot of the humour in Boy Kills World comes from the narration of Boy’s thoughts. His tongue was cut out and his ears were burned during the execution of his family. This left him deaf and mute. The writing team have added hilarious lines of dialogue for Boy’s thoughts that bring levity to the darker themes within the narrative.

The voice of the narration for Boy’s thoughts comes from a video game he remembers playing with his little sister when they were kids. This narration isn’t voiced by Skarsgård but rather H. Jon Benjamin (who voices Bob on Bob’s Burgers). He uses a similar voice as Bob here that compliments his delivery of each thought. And Skarsgård masterfully expresses these thoughts across his face.

VVS Films release BOY KILLS WORLD on Friday, April 16, 2024.