‘Bullet Train’ Review: A Wildly Entertaining Ride

From John Wick to Atomic Blonde to Nobody, action sequences are David Leitch’s bread and butter. Bullet Train takes a half dozen assassins, puts them all on a train together with one objective, and lets them run amok in a deadly playground on rails. It’s a wildly entertaining ride filled with solid action, spot on humor, and even a few surprises. Bullet Train is one trip you don’t want to ever end.

Veteran assassin Ladybug (Brad Pitt) took a break from the business for a beat, but now jumps back in with what he believes to be a simple snatch and grab job. His goal is to retrieve a specific briefcase from aboard a bullet train traveling to Tokyo. All he has to do is get in, get the case, and get out. Simple, right? Unfortunately for him, there are a handful of other expertly skilled assassins aboard the train who are all after the same briefcase but for different reasons. What was supposed to be an easy job for Ladybug quickly escalates to a brawling bloodbath.

Bullet Train has a lot of moving parts. It can be a little slow getting out of the station, but once it starts moving it quickly gains speed and then never really stops. There are a lot of characters to get to know, each with their own complicated backstories and motivations. Ladybug has a new calmer outlook on life after doing some soul searching while on his break. There’s also the “twins” Lemon (Brian Tyree Henry) and Tangerine (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) who are escorting the son of crime syndicate leader, The White Death. Young father Kimura (Andrew Koji) is after the one who pushed his son off a roof and sent him to a hospital. The Prince (Joey King) may look all sweet and innocent, but she hides a deadly skillset. The Wolf (Benito A Martínez Ocasio) is out for revenge against Ladybug for a previous job while Hornet (Zazie Beetz) works in the shadows with a deadly poison. It can be a little difficult to keep track of everything going on all at once, especially with the story jumping back and forth between what’s happening on the train and exploring each of these characters and their pasts. My biggest complaint about the film is that the exposition can be a bit heavy at times, especially in the earlier half of the film when everyone is still being introduced.

It’s all very necessary however because everyone so clearly has their own personality and agenda. By far my favorite characters in the film are Lemon and Tangerine, played brilliantly by Brian Tyree Henry and Aaron Taylor-Johnson. Tangerine is more of the straight man in the duo while Lemon has a fixation on Thomas the Tank Engine, explaining how Thomas taught him everything he needed to know about people and that he’s never wrong. Half the fun of the film is Lemon pulling out his sticker sheet and telling everyone which character they represent. Bullet Train has some downright hilarious moments between its bouts of action. Ladybug is always trying to deescalate the situation thanks to his new worldview. He is still more than capable of killing someone, he would just prefer to talk things out first if possible.

With David Leitch billed as both writer and director of Bullet Train, you can expect a lot of well choreographed action, and the film delivers plenty. Guns, knives, swords, injections; it’s all absolutely wild. All of the actors have fun in their attempts to get the upper hand and kill one another. On a train you really only move left or right but cinematographer Jonathan Sela keeps the camera moving in exciting ways and captures the claustrophobic and chaotic nature of everything that is happening. There is never a dull moment.

Bullet Train‘s story can be a little difficult to follow at times, because like its action it can be somewhat chaotic as well, but it is nonetheless entertaining. The film takes audiences on a wild journey that delivers plenty of action and humor. It builds this lavish playground and populates it with interesting and dangerous characters and then lets them all loose to see what happens, resulting in a nonstop thrill ride that tantalizes the senses. Just strap yourself in and prepare for one entertaining blockbuster.