Film Review: "Child 44" (2015).

"Catch the killer. Expose the truth." This is Child 44. This mystery thriller drama film directed by Daniel Espinosa, adapted by Richard Price, and based on Tom Rob Smith's 2008 novel of the same name. A Soviet-era security agent investigates a series of child murders but is demoted by his disillusioned superiors. With the support of his wife, he decides to pursue the case on his own.

Rob Smith's 2008 novel was itself directly inspired by the real life serial killer Andrei Chikatilo. Chikatilo, nicknamed the Butcher of Rostov, the Red Ripper, and the Rostov Ripper, sexually assaulted, murdered, and mutilated at least forty-three women and children between 1978 and 1990 in the Russian SFSR, the Ukrainian SSR, and the Uzbek SSR. In April 1992, he confessed to fifty-six murders and was tried for fifty-three of these killings. In October 1992, he was convicted and sentenced to death for fifty-two of these murders, although the Supreme Court of Russia ruled in 1993 that insufficient evidence existed to prove Chikatilo's guilt in nine of these murders. In February 1994, Chikatilo was subsequently executed. In April 2007, it was announced that Ridley Scott had optioned the film rights. Fox 2000 bought the project, and Price was hired to pen the script. In 2009, the adaptation was announced with Scott to direct and produce. However, Daniel Espinosa took over the director's chair from Scott, due to the latter's busy schedule. By early June 2013, Tom Hardy, Noomi Rapace, Joel Kinnaman, Gary Oldman, Vincent Cassel, Jason Clarke, Paddy Considine, Charles Dance, Tara Fitzgerald, and Josef Altin. Christian Bale was in talks to play the lead role of Captain Leo Demidov, but he ultimately declined. Initially, Philip Seymour Hoffman was cast as Major Kuzmin, but was replaced with Cassel, due to his death in February 2014. At the same time, principal photography commenced, and took place in Prague, Ostrava and Kladno in Czech Republic. During filming, original cinematographer Philippe Rousselot was replaced with Oliver Wood for unknown reasons. The first cut of the film was around five and a half hours long, but was cut down to two hours and seventeen minutes.

The film stars an ensemble cast that includes Hardy, Rapace, Kinnaman, Oldman, Cassel, Clarke, Considine, Dance, Fitzgerald, and Altin. The realism and the intensity in the best scenes of the film was due to the convincing acting by the main cast members. Hardy, in a natural and convincing way, steals the show with his charisma.

Espinosa has made a believable, well-acted, nice-looking, and surprisingly thrilling film, with a nerve and a pace that is often missing in most English-Language thrillers. Based on Rob Smith's novel and inspired by the true story of a Russian serial killer, a film like this one works to make the killing and the gruesome details of serial murder the least entertaining element of its story and plot. In that regard, it's fascinating and absorbing. It's Espinosa's finest film so far. Not one of the best serial killer movie I have ever seen, but not one of the worst I have ever seen.

Simon says Child 44 receives:

Also, see my review for Safe House.