The Mechanic : Other movies that follow the life of a killer/sociopath

Other movies that follow the life of a killer/sociopath

Can anyone suggest any?

Re: Other movies that follow the life of a killer/sociopath

One that comes to mind that came out fairly recently (and is available for rental) is a film called "The Matador" starring Pierce Brosnan. It shares several subtle parallels to "The Mechanic" throughout its plot. It does however at times get a little humorous, although overall was pretty well done. Also, you may want to check out "Day of the Jackyl" which is from the same era as "The Mechanic" and although I haven't seen this film in some time, I do remember it being very good. Hope this has been helpful...

Re: Other movies that follow the life of a killer/sociopath

you could try fulltime killer which is quite good and classic the killer

Re: Other movies that follow the life of a killer/sociopath

dont watch the matador. it sucks and its basically just a comedy.

You've fallen in love with all the things in life that destroy men!

Re: Other movies that follow the life of a killer/sociopath

The real sociopath in the movie is Steve. Steve's justification for killing Bishop is because he answers to the "organization". Steve wants to pick his own marks, hit when he wants too. If there is no contract, then Steve is just killing random people for fun. Kind of strange and somewhat of a hole in the plot.

Re: Other movies that follow the life of a killer/sociopath

thanks for clearing that out. i really didnt understand what he said or get that point of the movie. i always thought it had to do with his dad or he was hired by an organization to do a hit on him.

I guess that goes consistent with the rest of his character. This makes it a social commetating where you cant be better with the organization but you cant live without them.

You've fallen in love with all the things in life that destroy men!

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Re: Other movies that follow the life of a killer/sociopath

rexcrammer wrote:
" If there is no contract, then Steve is just killing random people for fun. Kind of strange and somewhat of a hole in the plot."
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I think Steve's point was that he would decline certain contracts if he wanted to, picking his own marks in that sense. Why he would want to be so choosy is a mystery. I think the movie was just trying to channel the spirit of rebellious youth of the times.

Re: Other movies that follow the life of a killer/sociopath

It was also a little bit of a mystery to me as to why the Organization did not like the idea of Steve working as a hit man for them. I thought Bishop had a point when he told the "Man" that someone trained by him would be of value to them. But perhaps it simply necessary to move the story along and create the drama and action sequences.

Re: Other movies that follow the life of a killer/sociopath

Steve being a true sociopath is his entire purpose for being in the story. That's not a plot hole, that's a plot point. Arthur is giving Steve the training Steve needs to kill ARTHUR! You can tell exactly when Arthur gets the inspiration to make Steve his associate -- when Steve tells the suicidal Louise: "if you don't care about your own life, why should I?" The entire first hour of the movie was devoted to demonstrating how Arthur's physical body is still a well-honed machine, but he's psychologically fragmenting. He has many authentic paintings in his home but the only one the audience sees him paying mind to is a copy of Hieronymus Bosch's THE LAST JUDGMENT. He collapses while visting an aquarium, when seeing the fish trapped behind glass triggers his own anxiety over being trapped in his way of life. And his "teaching" lectures are actually Existentialist musings to justify his continued living to himself.

Arthur found the dossier Steve was preparing about him BEFORE leaving for Italy, but took Steve along anyway. AND he booby-trapped Steve's car. If Arthur was living by the existentialist principals he was espousing to Steve, he would not have cared what Steve would be up to after Arthur's death. He snuffed Steve because he never trusted Steve not to misuse his training. In other words, Arthur had set up a trap that would have killed Steve regardless of the circumstances of Arthur's death.

Re: Other movies that follow the life of a killer/sociopath

That's an interesting view on the aquarium, tensaip. I thought that Bishop's issues at the aquarium had to do with his memories of falling in the lake as a child.

Forgive me for being picky, but when Bishop looks at the painting, he is studying the middle portion of Bosch's triptych "The Garden of Earthly Delights," not the Last Judgement portion. The middle portion depicts people enjoying all sorts of fruit and sex and sex with people who have heads of fruit and other weird stuff. It represents indulging pleasures and living in a state of sin. That fits nicely with your point that Bishop does care what Steve does after Bishop's death, and it suggests that Bishop feels a bit guilty about his trade, which is probably the cause of his psychological problems.

Re: Other movies that follow the life of a killer/sociopath

A few recommendations from the top of my head (no particular order):

Le Samouraï
Blast of Silence
The Day of the Jackal
(only the original version with Edward Fox!)
Ghost Dog
Léon
Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer
C'est arrivé près de chez vous

Re: Other movies that follow the life of a killer/sociopath

then theres

ichi the killer
man bites dog
american psycho
mr brooks

Re: Other movies that follow the life of a killer/sociopath

Man Bites Dog and C'est arrivé près de chez vous are one and the same movie, in fact.

Re: Other movies that follow the life of a killer/sociopath

umm, i knew that, i just thought that it was so good it should be mentioned twice. yep, thats it (phew, i think i got away with it)

Re: Other movies that follow the life of a killer/sociopath

Word, I thought I wrote this post.

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Re: Other movies that follow the life of a killer/sociopath

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Re: Other movies that follow the life of a killer/sociopath

Has anybody mentioned Leon? If not, I'd suggest that one.

Re: Other movies that follow the life of a killer/sociopath

[Does the "shooting himself in the head" gesture with his hand]

Re: Other movies that follow the life of a killer/sociopath

The Jackal (1997)
bourne series
pulp fiction

Re: Other movies that follow the life of a killer/sociopath

i agree. that one is a great movie and a great reference. lol.

You've fallen in love with all the things in life that destroy men!

Re: Other movies that follow the life of a killer/sociopath

LOL

Re: Other movies that follow the life of a killer/sociopath

Columbia Pictures Film Noir Classics Volume 1 has a few you might like. Murder by Contract (1958) follows the life of a hitman with more than a few similarities to the Charles Bronson character in this film. The Sniper (1952) follows the life of a serial killer with the urge to pick off women from afar. The Lineup (1958) shows us a day in the life of a hit man and his psychopathic protege (Eli Wallach).

I agree with the recommendations of Léon and Blast of Silence.


...Justin

Re: Other movies that follow the life of a killer/sociopath

I would also add in the French film Le Samourai. Personality wise, very similar to the Mechanic.

Re: Other movies that follow the life of a killer/sociopath

If you like comic books you might enjoy "The Killer" by Luc Jacamon. And for the record, "The Day of the Jackal" is in my opinion the best of the movies that follows around a contract killer (though a sizable amount of the film focuses on the police who are hunting him).

Re: Other movies that follow the life of a killer/sociopath

While not movie, that HBO special called The Iceman, was pretty engaging. I think its available on youtube. In some ways he was an excellent hitman as he was able to balance being a cold blooded killer while maintaining a seemingly normal family life. Something Bishop could not do.

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Re: Other movies that follow the life of a killer/sociopath

MEMORY OF A KILLER--a Dutch film about an older hitman who is about to lose his memory

BLAST OF SILENCE--this very dark 1961 film-noir indie is all about a New York hitman and how he lives his life--well-made, it even looks like a European film in part due to its unique---you couldn't even tell it was low-budget, it was shot and made so well.

Re: Other movies that follow the life of a killer/sociopath

In addition to the ones mentioned by others I might suggest Best Seller starring James Woods and Brian Dennehy. James Woods plays a pretty cold and ruthless hitman in that one and is very good in the role.

_________________________
Au revoir, Shosanna.

Beyond Hypothermia (1996)

This was the last great statement in 20th Century Hong Kong Cinema's Female Assassin subgenre. It's philosophically deep, said philosophy being Confucianism. The story is also firmly rooted in it's contemporary political setting of 1996 and the anxiety over the imminent handover of Hong Kong to the Maiinland Communists.

This movie also probably holds the non-Woo squibs record.

Re: Other movies that follow the life of a killer/sociopath

If you are at all partial to film noir, I would suggest _This Gun for Hire_ (1942). It's a great movie.

Re: Other movies that follow the life of a killer/sociopath

A shock to the system (1990)with Michael Caine and Unleashed (2005) with Jet Li.

Re: Other movies that follow the life of a killer/sociopath

Frank Sinatra plays a great killer/ psycho in
SUDDENLY. CHECK IT OUT
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