SHOOTING AT SPEED
Brad Pitt’s new ‘Bullet Train’ is an action thriller about five sociopaths scrapping in the confines of the world’s fastest train, writes Andrea Nagel
Add the name Brad Pitt to any film and it is far more likely to become a commercial hit. Even taking into account negative press asserting that Pitt’s inclusion in the largely Western cast portraying characters from a Japanese page-turner smacks a bit of Hollywood whitewashing. The film is Bullet Train, adapted from the novel Maria Beetle by Kotaro Isaka.
Considering the director, it’s not surprising Pitt signed on. David Leitch took more than a few punches for the actor in films such as Fight Club and The Mexican as his stunt double. He also was on site when Pitt met his former wife, Angelina Jolie, in Mr & Mrs Smith.
Pitt, in a virtual interview with the cast from Paris, says he was delighted to be in the film. “The script was funny, the cast was great and then there was David Leitch with whom I already had a great relationship. It was great to come full circle with him — and work on a project where he’s the boss.”
Delivering a thrilling and violent narrative, which also tells an intriguing story, takes expertise behind the scenes and Leitch’s former life was invaluable.
“We didn’t try to tame the performances,” he says. “We just let it go wild.”
Bullet Train is about five assassins on a fast-moving train from Tokyo to the northern city Morioka, with only a few stops in between. Each killer has their own backstory which, we discover by the end, interlink.
Pitt plays Ladybug, a killer who wants to give up the life but is pulled back in to collect a briefcase on the train. His mission puts him on a collision course with lethal adversaries from around the globe.
His co-star “assassins” include Joey King as The Prince, Aaron Taylor-Johnson as Tangerine, Brian Tyree Henry as Lemon and Benito A Martínez Ocasio as The Wolf.
Taylor-Johnson says: “The film was built around the collaboration of the actors. We could build on the backstory of these fabulously eccentric characters — and that it all holds together and is infused with the action and choreography of the fight scenes is a testament to the director.”
King, whose character masquerades as a schoolgirl, says: “My character is a vengeful psychopath … it was so much fun to get into her shoes. What makes this film unique is that each character, each killer, has their own personal and distinct style.”
Each of the actors agrees. “We were given the space to experiment with the characters’ style, so you see an amazing clash of different expressions,” says TaylorJohnson. “I wanted a slow-motion walk and I got it,” says Tyree Henry. “We all felt safe to improvise.”
A concern for the producers was keeping the audience entertained throughout because the action takes place in a tight space. The entire film is set on the train, so they created a different “vibe” for each car.
“We also created spaces of escape from the claustrophobia of the cabins by allowing the audience a breather into the outside world in terms of each character’s back story,” says Leitch. “Each moment outside the train is a relief.”
The film was made in a studio in Los Angeles. “The technology was amazing,” says Pitt. “Nothing like those old Hitchcock films made with only rear projection. We had massive video walls three car lengths long and 20 feet tall. They filmed the whole journey from Tokyo to Kyoto in a tube.”
But Bullet Train isn’t only action sequences. “My biggest challenge was to find humanity in the characters,” says Leitch. “None of them are redeemable but you get to go on a journey with them and we worked hard to make that relatable and fun. It’s a bombastic, comedic experience where you forget everything and just go along for the ride.”
Bullet Train is on circuit.