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DVD Review: Killers

By Prairie Miller

Continuing her self-effacing female doormat in movies, Katherine Heigl (Knocked Up, The Ugly Truth) once again displays her knack for dating significantly down while forgiving the men in her life for just about anything, in Killers. Teamed this time around in peculiar matrimony with Ashton Kutcher, who last got caught with his pants down as a conniving baby-faced gigolo in Spread, Heigl makes the most of a marriage to die for to a secret government assassin, in a kind of family that slays together stays together post-nuptial pandemonium.

Heigl is 'Just Jen' Kornfeldt in Killers, a depressed neurotic with chronic stomach issues who's just been dumped by a boyfriend, and tags along after her boozer mom (Catherine O'Hara) and bossy ex-marine dad (Tom Selleck) on their French Riviera vacation. When she runs into a bare chested Spencer (Ashton Kutcher) and his bulging biceps while munching on Maalox in the hotel elevator, it's pretty much instant mutual infatuation. And it seems there's no turning back once he relieves her of a seductive one-size-too-small dress she recklessly grabbed off a rack, with his handy professional strength homicidal dagger. And though Spencer is periodically carrying out target hits between their romantic trysts, Jen doesn't happen to notice a thing as the story moves along three years later into their rather fast forward courtship and matrimony.

But when close pals and neighbors start gunning for Spencer and she observes more than a few best friend beatdowns by her secretive spouse, Jen does begin to get hunches that this may not be your typical suburban marriage. And when Spencer finally fesses up, though insisting he only kills bad guys, Jen is soon inducted as a sidekick by default. Especially because the pair are running for their lives, without a cop ever in sight.

There's not much in the way of convincing chemistry going on between Heighl and Kutcher, which is why the story initially sags but then picks up steam as it veers into comedic thriller territory. And helped in no small part by a host of unlikely everyday assassins who keep popping up, in this 'with friends like these' mildly amusing summer fluff espionage burb romance.

Lionsgate
Rated PG-13
2 1/2 [out of 4] stars

DVD Features: Gag Reel: Featurette: Killer Chemistry: Behind the Scenes with the Killers Cast; Deleted, Alternate, Extended Scenes.

Prairie Miller is a multimedia journalist online, in print and on radio. Contact her through NewsBlaze.