Fridae

Married couples keep secrets from each other. These secrets are little acts of kindness keep the marriage going unless one or both of them are spies or assassins: then it makes for a good comedy.The little premise has been played out with James Cameron directing the best comedy he’ll ever make (True Lies), Brad Pitt and Anglina Jolie in a movie that brought them together (Mr & Mrs Smith), and a kiddie franchise with Robert Rodriguez’s Spy Kids.

In Killers, the premise is that Spencer, the CIA assassin who kills only bad guys (played by Kutcher) decides to walk out on his job after falling in love with a very normal and average (though fabulously well-to-do) Jennifer in the middle of an assignment. But while they are enjoying their boring, married life in the boring suburbs, his past will catch up with him, literally threatening his life and their marriage.

It’s so straightforward and fuss-free that this could have been a telemovie. But there are little details that make this a pleasant diversion. Before the plot goes into business mode, the script does have some fun toying with the idea of a secret CIA agent dating and carrying on a romance while doing his assignments. We’re surprised the director didn’t want to do more with this. There’s also a fair bit of Kutcher-sexploitation going on, with the actor getting more parts of his anatomy and physique revealed than his pretty co-star.

The intended comic showcase of this film seems to be how the couple’s marriage comes under tensions as they fend for their lives and fight off killers, and most of the movie’s funniest lines happen in this context. That’s all fine and dandy but somewhere along the line, the established personality traits of Hiegl’s character get lost in the mayhem, making her character and reaction rather flat and one dimensional as the film’s supporting cast.

The strongest suit of Killers is its action sequences, followed by the gratuitous fan service shots of Ashton Kutcher’s torso and the small of his back. While predictable and not very ambitious, this should be pleasantly entertaining.