4/10

Tom Hardy stars as a Soviet officer on the hunt for Russia’s first serial killer in 1953. “Child 44” chronicles the crisis of conscience for secret police agent Leo Demidov [Tom Hardy], who loses status, power and home when he refuses to denounce his own wife, Raisa [Noomi Rapace], as a traitor. Exiled from Moscow to a grim small-town outpost, Leo and Raisa join forces with General Mikhail Nesterov [Gary Oldman] to track down a serial killer who preys on young boys. Their quest for justice threatens a system-wide cover-up enforced by Leo’s psychopathic rival Vasili [Joel Kinnaman], who insists “There is no crime in Paradise”. I was looking quite forward to this film, as it was the only book of the Leo trilogy that i read. The book is great because while it does have a lot of different plots happening at once, 400 pages is plenty of time to allow all it to soak in and never feel tedious. That is a major problem with Daniel Espinosa’s script for this film, as there is too much going on at once in a structure that lacks any legitimate suspense. While the film struggles for identity between being a whodunnit? serial killer shoot em up, and a political thriller that hints at a deeper meaning just below the surface we are given, the film’s two hour and twelve minute run time does a number on an audience that has their patience tested more than once with trying to hold on. The film is very well acted, and it’s because of that trait that it doesn’t lose nearly as many points with me as it probably should. Hardy is my favorite actor currently, and he brings a quiet rage to Demidov. Hardy got me so lost in his role that i actually forgot he isn’t Russian even though his accent couldn’t be more spot-on. Rapace shows again that she has a wide range for the teary-eyed scenes. There is something about her brilliance that makes you always feel for her characters even if they don’t bring out the best morally. The only problem i had with the casting is sadly in Kinnaman. I have been a fan of Joel’s since he brought a truckload of personality to AMC’s series “The Killing”, but in “Child 44” he serves as too much of a distraction. His villainous turn feels forced, and his accent attempt is the complete opposite of Hardy’s. There are many times in the film where he breaks character, and it’s the fastest way to draw you out of concentration on that particular scene. While the film editing was horrendous, the sound editing was among the very best i have heard this year. The camera work could be better on the gun shooting scenes (Too much shaky cam to register actions), but the sound was so loud and unforgiving that it really put me right there in the scene shielding for my life. Overall, the movie is a solid effort, and there is a truly gripping story somewhere in this tedious mess of scenes that never take the freeway to the point they are trying to convey. But the solid performances are wasted on a mood that stays as dry as it is bloated. Leave this one on the shelf of obscurity.