Written and directed by Lee Thongkham, co-written by Sorawi Alapach and Teerat Vanavongtanate, a highly trained teenage assassin, Dina, and her mentor, Charlie, form an unlikely duo as they unexpectedly join forces to stop a sinister plot and save millions of lives. Starring: Ploypailin Thangprapaporn, Denkhun Ngamnet, Somchai Kemglad, Vithaya Pansringarm, Keetapat Pongruea, Sutina Laoamnuaichai and Pat Chatburirak.
Young and innocent on the outside, deadly and vicious on the inside, it’s always a good combination for an action flick, add in a bumbling rookie, a bit of flirtation and a dramatic history and you’re hitting right on the formula. That’s basically the foundation of Kitty the Killer but it’s not a foolproof recipe, it also requires a certain amount of charm, comedy or intensity, which this film doesn’t have.
What it does have is a serious amount of cringeworthy moments, the writing is cheesy and flimsy. It sincerely struggles to hold your attention when it has so little to work with, there’s no tangible drama, comedy or consistent action to hold things together. It also makes its male lead, Charlie (Denkhun Ngamnet) incredibly dumb so it becomes quite hard to believe that he’d be at all capable. He’s a complete goofball who’s under the impression he’s a heartthrob and it definitely plays a big part in Kitty the Killer’s cringe quota.
Visually, you can Lee Thongkham was going for a mix of videogame aesthetics, Wanted action and with a touch of Kill Bill but ultra-modern. Although it can have a strange movement to it, almost as if it’s lagging, there’s something synthetic about it. It’s also topped with some terrible music choices, poor pacing and while the choreography is decently done, the action sequences lack bite.
Ploypailin Thangprapaporn’s Dina is a solid lead but she never truly gets the chance to get her teeth into this character. A mix of not enough screen time and making her too vulnerable, adding an element of the damsel in distress rather than a true heroine. A lot of the same can be said of the whole band of women, they’re a good group of characters but they spend so little time together and building their bond, that they’re slightly wasted.
Kitty the Killer starts off on rocky footing and never quite finds a clear path. There’s a good foundation but it’s plagued by a great deal of weaknesses from the pacing to lacking atmosphere to simply trying too hard. It has its moments but it’s a struggle to get through in between those sparks. If it was half an hour shorter, used its time to develop the plot more effectively and made a real effort with the comedy, it could be a really enjoyable action adventure.
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