Boy Kills World (2024) – Review

Quick thoughts – Grade – B – Boy Kills World is a gnarly delight that features solid performances from Bill Skarsgård, Jessica Rothe, Andrew Koji, and Michelle Dockery.

Paying homage to Jackie Chan, Japanese anime, and Monty Python and the Holy Grail (Boy Kills World has its own Black Knight-type character), Moritz Mohr’s film is wildly violent and it successfully avoids becoming too precious with its inner-monologue narration and stylish action. It’s hard to dislike Boy Kills World because all it wants to do is entertain and showcase Dawid Szatarski’s inventive action design that features Bill Skarsgård, Jessica Rothe, Andrew Koji and Yayan Ruhian beating people up in kitchens, hallways, and television studios. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Director Moritz Mohr said that he made the film because “We wanted to make something that had some fun because Germany rarely has fun. There’s no action movies, there’s a few horror movies. It’s mostly arthouse.” You can tell that Mohr and his cast definitely had fun as they all look great and helped selI a high-energy experience that showcases what happens to an armpit when it meets a cheese grater. 

Boy Kills World, revolves around a boy named Boy (Skarsgård) seeking revenge on Hilda Van Der Koy (Famke Janssen), the psychopathic leader of an authoritarian regime, who controls the populace by holding an annual event called The Culling. The event keeps the populace in check by forcing Hilda’s most outspoken critics to battle to the death inside a television studio that broadcasts the event around the world. Boy wants revenge because Hilda killed his family and left him hung up in a tree with a noose slowly strangling him. In a good news-bad news situation, Boy is saved by Mentor (Ruhian) and forced to endure a decade’s worth of training that involves copious drug use  and enough martial arts training to ensure that when he’s unleashed, he’ll be able overcome his demons (which include visions of his deceased sister that make him freeze during fights) to defeat Hilda and her murderous bodyguard named June 27 (Jessica Rothe).

In a unique twist, Boy becomes a deaf mute after Hilda’s attack, and since he cannot remember his own voice, his inner-narration comes from one of his favorite video game characters voiced by H. Jon Benjamin. It takes a few minutes to get into the rhythm of Boy Kills World as H. Jon Benjamin’s joke-heavy narration rules over the proceedings and makes you wonder if the unique storytelling device is a one-note gimmick. However, as the action kicks into gear and we are introduced to more of the world, it becomes easier to sit back and relax while Boy battles the world. The supporting cast made up of Michelle Dockery, Andrew Koji, Sharlto Copley, Brett Gelman, and Isaiah Mustafa is excellent, and they all get moments to shine as they complain about owls or push carts (instead of fighting) during action scenes. 

It took seven years for Mohr to get his film made in South Africa, and he credits producer’s Sam Raimi and Roy Lee for helping him get funding after he and Dawid Szatarski showed them a proof-of-concept trailer and pre-viz reel that showcased the inventive fight scenes. The long delay helped clean up the script – which is a good thing because the movie successfully walks a tight-rope of stylish action and cheeky humor that could’ve easily slowed the move to a halt if it wasn’t handled correctly. In the end, the committed performances (Rothe and Skarsgård got shredded for this movie), likable characters, and inventive fight scenes win the day and I totally recommend that you watch Boy Kills World.