The Wasteland Reviewer

Boy Kills World (2024) Written Review

How far would you go for revenge? Mirtz Mohr delivers a classic tale of revenge and a search for “justice” in a world that is crazy and unique. Boy Kills World sets the stage with Boy whose family was murdered by the evil Van Der Koy siblings. They lead a cruel and oppressive dystopia under the family’s powerful thumb. Boy is raised and trained by a talented shaman who turns Boy into a killing machine. But with his hearing and tongue taken from him, he learns to perceive the world in a different way. The most interesting choice is that Boy created an interval voice for himself to lead his way through a crazy world of blood and violence. 

What works best about this insane action/comedy? The cast is loads of fun. One of the biggest standout elements from the film is the inclusion of an internal voice that helps him process the world while also giving the audience a good bit of comedic timing. H. Jon Benjamin was a revelation as this internal voice as he has a great resume of voiceover work as well as a voice that captures the innocence and insecurity of Boy. The Van Der Koy family is a crew of dastardly individuals played with so much commitment by its stars. The two women in the family don’t get as much fun but Famke Janssen is quite unhinged, and Michelle Dockery is a charismatic madwoman transfixed by her ratings and television program. Sharlto Copley portrays an ignorant man-child with such authenticity and commitment. But it is Brett Gellman who has plenty to work with here as he balances impressive humor with a level of intimidation that is surprisingly effective. Jessica Rothe has a lot more going on with her character than you might expect but nevertheless she delivers an intense and physical performance that many people will be impressed by. Throw in The Raid star, Yayah Ruhian, and you have quite an action-packed cast. 

Speaking of the action…how thrilling does Mohr make this new action black comedy? The action sequences are quite impressive. The stunt work is quite impressive and kudos to all those performers who make the fight sequences in this film come to life. There is a visceral nature to the violence and anger present in the action sequences. There are plenty of unique and imaginative sequences in the action. Some of it defies those laws of physics or human biology for that matter but it plays well in this hyper realized work. There are buckets of blood, bullets, limbs, and laughs throughout all the action beats. If you are an action film aficionado, there is plenty here to sink your teeth into. 

How successful is Mohr at crafting the rest of the film? There are certainly some big tonal shifts in the film. There is generally a tongue-in-cheek nature to the film, so you do expect there to be some laughs along the way (which the film certainly delivers on). But this is a pitch-black dark comedy as there are plenty of heavy elements from murder, slaughter, butchering, assassinations, killing of children, and overall genocide. Yeah…this is a crazy and screwed up world that Boy inhabits. There is plenty of humor in the physicality as Mohr captures a modernized and warped sense of humor that is injected into some consistent slapstick gags. You would never see this outside of Chaplin or Keaton, but you get to feel that love and care. Filmmaking has come a long way. The final 25-minutes or so of the film take a huge turn towards a much more serious tone that can feel a bit jarring. You know the film is getting more serious when Benjamin stops a lot of his voiceover hijinks. 

Does Mohr keep the film together narratively? The cast, action, and dark laughs are the real elements of the film that make this a worthwhile watch. But that is not to say there isn’t some solid story work going on as well. This feels like a crazy unique world but to be honest it does borrow many elements from other films. There is a basic revenge plot with Boy wanting to kill the family responsible for the death of his family. There is a Battle Royale/Hunger Games type murder competition aired on television. The themes of revenge and classism are also quite familiar. But the final 20-minutes or so reframes this whole story in an interesting and bold way. Some of the surprises were obvious but others were quite shocking. This film pushes the two-hour mark for a story over the course of an evening. The film could have been leaner, but it still delivers a satisfying and exciting experience. 

Does Mohr’s Boy Kills World deliver a new must-see entry in modern action filmmaking? The action movie renaissance is alive and kicking with this new thrilling and hilarious action black comedy that is like a fever dream of blood, limbs, and body counts. There is a crazy mind in the head of Mohr and hopefully it keeps producing fun genre flicks like this.