The Man Who Killed Hitler and Then The Bigfoot. Those nine little words summon up all kinds of wild cinematic visions that would be right at home in the grindhouse; reading them, I can almost hear the crackle of blood-splattered celluloid winding its way through a rusty projector. Yet the film that lays claim to this incredibly evocative title is not at all what you might expect.
The feature debut of writer-director Robert D. Krzykowski, The Man Who Killed Hitler and Then The Bigfoot stars Sam Elliott as the titular man, an American war hero who is reluctantly summoned from his quiet existence to eliminate a monster that threatens all of humanity. Yet the insane action promised by the title is not actually what the film is about. Instead, it provides a surprisingly emotional look at how past actions can come back to haunt you in old age.
He is Legend
Calvin Barr (Elliott) lives a quiet life in his old age, mostly staying at home alone with his dog apart from his daily drinks at a dive bar and the rare occasions that he visits his barber, Ed (Larry Miller), who also happens to be his younger brother, for a trim. Such a simple, uneventful existence means that Calvin has plenty of time to dwell on the past. Certain objects in his life summon up visions so vivid that they could have taken place yesterday, let alone decades ago: falling in love with a beautiful teacher named Maxine (Caitlin FitzGerald), heading off to fight for the Allies in World War II, and being recruited to fulfill a top secret, ultra-dangerous mission: killing Adolf Hitler.
That Calvin’s true role in the war is known only to a select few doesn’t seem to bother him; what bothers him is that he had to kill a man in the first place. It was an action that changed his life forever and yet, in Calvin’s eyes, it doesn’t seem to have changed the world all that much; after all, Hitler’s evil ideas lived on after his death. However, despite Calvin’s best efforts to forget the past, it keeps coming back to haunt him – especially when two government agents representing the U.S. (Ron Livingston) and Canada (Rizwan Manji) come knocking at his door.
Turns out, the Bigfoot is real and currently rampaging through the Canadian wilderness, carrying a virus that could kill nearly everyone in its path. As a legendary tracker and war hero – not to mention, one of the few immune to the virus – Calvin is apparently the last hope humanity has to destroy the Bigfoot. Calvin is forced to wrestle with his desire to never kill again and his obligation to save the world. Based on the film’s title, you can probably guess which side he lands on.
Monsters and Men
The titular man might have killed the monsters, but one thing is for sure: he is what keeps this film alive. Between this role and his Oscar-nominated performance in A Star is Born, Sam Elliott is clearly still a force to be reckoned with onscreen. His natural gravitas and emotionally evocative performance carry The Man Who Killed Hitler and Then The Bigfoot and ground even the more ridiculous moments in reality. Indeed, I am convinced that only Sam Elliott could seriously tell his younger brother that he was going off to kill the Bigfoot and have me actually believe it instead of rolling on the ground in laughter. The epic monologue he gives when acknowledging his role in killing Hitler to the government officials is intense, angry, and surprisingly moving. The use of objects to trigger Calvin’s flashbacks felt surprisingly natural in the context of this story, largely due to Elliott’s performance; the authenticity inherent in his actions kept these moments from feeling too cliched.
The supporting performances are less impressive; the other actors, including Aidan Turner as young Calvin in the many wartime flashbacks, all seem unable to decide whether their characters exist in a cheesy B-movie or an earnest war drama. Elliott does neither of these things – he just embraces the humanity of the character, making Calvin feel all too real despite his utterly unreal exploits. When he finally comes face to face with the Bigfoot (which, for the record, doesn’t happen until around the hour mark of the 90-minute movie), the intensity of the encounter will shock you.
Krzykowski’s decision to use elements of the absurd to tell a story that could apply to any older person looking back on their life with a tinge of regret is an odd one and one that doesn’t always land. The Bigfoot stuff results in a few weird tonal jerks, such as when Calvin gazes upon the arsenal assembled for him by the government and breezily demands “that gun, that scope, and this knife. That’s it.” It’s a funny, ballsy moment, and Elliott plays it with total badassery, but it’s one that belongs in a different type of movie: you know, the type of movie one would assume this one is before actually sitting down to watch it. There were moments in the film where I questioned why the mission needed to involve the Bigfoot, seeing as Calvin’s arc could just as easily have applied to a more realistic story. Yet there’s no denying it’s the absurd enunciated in the title that drew me in, and even if The Man Who Killed Hitler and Then The Bigfoot ended up not being what I expected, I still enjoyed it.
Conclusion: The Man Who Killed Hitler And Then The Bigfoot
While in my heart of hearts I would have preferred for The Man Who Killed Hitler and Then The Bigfoot to be the schlocky, alternative history-infused monsterfest seemingly advertised by the title (and poster – look at this gem), it’s difficult to be actually disappointed with the film.
What do you think? Does The Man Who Killed Hitler and Then The Bigfoot sound like what you would have expected from the title? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
The Man Who Killed Hitler and Then The Bigfoot is released in the U.S. on February 8, 2019. You can find more international release dates here.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9hnQt-y5TU
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