“Nobody” Theatrical Poster
Director: Ilya Naishuller
Cast: Bob Odenkirk, Connie Nielsen, Aleksei Serebryakov, RZA, Michael Ironside, Colin Salmon, Christopher Lloyd, Gage Munroe, Billy MacLellan, J. P. Manoux
Running Time: 92 min.
By Paul Bramhall
Any movie which advertises itself as “From the writer of John Wick” provides some inclination as to what to expect, however even the most casual movie fan may be surprised at just how many tropes are recycled in 2021’s Nobody. Mysterious character living a peaceful life who was historically a bad ass killer? Check! A quirky plot device involving something close to said character being compromised resulting in him springing back into action? Check! Russian mafia inserted into plot as de facto bad guys? Check! It’s all here, and it all feels remarkably familiar. Perhaps we can’t blame Derek Kolstad for revisiting a formula that’s proven to work, but then he did also write the Steve Austin and Dolph Lundgren vehicle The Package, so we know he can mix things up a little if he wanted to. Then again, The Package was a DTV flick.
With that being said, there’s one key difference between the sharp suited John Wick and the everyman Nobody portrayed by Bob Odenkirk (of Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul fame). Whereas John Wick was a retired assassin who enjoyed his new life of domestic bliss, Odenkirk’s nobody is the flip side of the coin. A former ‘auditor’ for the likes of the CIA and the FBI (“agencies with 3 letters” as he refers to them), while he attempts to live a normal life with a wife and kids, inside there’s a constant craving for the violence of his old ways. Those old ways have a chance to be revisited when the family abode is threatened by a pair of home invaders, which while initially non-confrontational, once it’s discovered that the thieves took his daughters “kitty cat bracelet” it provides the perfect excuse needed to go and bust some heads.
Nobody is the sophomore feature length production of Russian director Ilya Naishuller, following his ambitious 2015 debut Hardcore Henry, a one-take (consisting of several edited together) action movie filmed entirely from a first-person perspective. Hardcore Henry is such a unique movie that it seemed Naishuller would either go onto bigger things or we’d never hear from him again, and for a while it seemed to be the latter, so to see him back at the helm of an action movie 6 years later is reassuring.
Furthermore he’s brought along a pair of fight choreographers for the ride in the form of Daniel Bernhardt and Kirk Jenkins. For fans of action cinema Bernhardt will likely need no introduction, from his early roles in the Bloodsport sequels through to his memorable action performances in the likes of The Matrix Reloaded and Atomic Blonde (that stairwell fight scene!), he’s a physical talent who always delivers whatever the role. He also clocks in a small role here in front of the camera, and is on the receiving end of the most wince inducing shot of the whole movie. On the other hand Jenkins has spent much of his career as a stuntman, and has only recently started getting involved in fight choreography, having worked as part of the fight team on the likes of Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw and The Mandalorian. He can next be seen choreographing solo on David Leitch’s (here serving as producer) upcoming Bullet Train.
As it happens the kitty cat bracelet in question turns out to be somewhat of a non-starter, when Odenkirk realises that the thieves are a struggling couple just looking for enough to get by and take care of their baby. With a volcanos worth of pent up frustration, several saviours arrive at once when a bunch of drunken deviants take over the bus he’s riding back home, amongst them Bernhardt and Alain Moussi (star of the rebooted Kickboxer franchise and Jiu Jitsu – here credited only as Bus Goon, which is probably what his acting range is best suited to). We often hear Odenkirk’s thoughts via voiceover, and he practically begs them to start trouble so he can have a chance to unleash, which they duly oblige and soon come to regret. Unfortunately, one of the thugs turns out to be the brother of a ruthless Russian mobster, who isn’t pleased that someone has turned his sibling into a vegetable and swears to take revenge.
To describe the series of events that constitutes Nobody’s plot as paper thin is probably being complimentary. Sure enough the entire framework is really there to hang the action scenes off, but unlike John Wick who’s forced into action after losing something dear to him, here Odenkirk’s character is simply looking for a catalyst to bring the hyper violence, and as a result it’s not all that compelling (and definitely not relatable!). Ironically at one point the Russian mobster is referred to as a sociopath, however if anything Odenkirk seems closer to being one more than any other character we’re introduced to. This is a guy who actively seeks out violence, and only once he’s beaten a bus load of goons half to death does he find the energy to really connect with his family and show them a level of attention that was previously absent. How to be a loving husband and father 101 Nobody definitely isn’t.
It’s difficult to tell if this was intentional or down to a lack of awareness with the writing, however despite how questionable the leading characters personality traits may be on paper, onscreen Odenkirk makes for a likeable presence. He brings a kind of world-weary amicability to the character, and the running joke of the various bad guys he takes out dying before he can finish whatever trail of thought he’s calmly dispensing successfully hits the mark. What feels a little too obvious in Nobody’s structure is the clear intent for it to be the first in a franchise. Christopher Lloyd (Back to the Future) plays Odenkirk’s father and steals whatever scene he’s in, and we learn that he also raised RZA (The Man with the Iron First, Tom Yum Goong 2), who doesn’t. For those wondering, yes, Odenkirk and RZA are the Woody Harrelson and Wesley Snipes of 2021 (not often you can make a Money Train reference).
RZA’s screen time is minimal, and we learn precisely nothing about the family dynamic or how Lloyd came to raise them both to essentially be one-man killing machines. However the lack of detail feels intentional, with a post credits sequence involving Lloyd and RZA practically screaming “We’re going to explore this more in Nobody 2!”. That’s well and good, but it doesn’t address the issue that I didn’t give a damn about his character in this instalment. We’re also given a hint of what could be the Nobody equivalent of the John Wick universes Continental Hotel, with the introduction of a character called The Barber, who again we spend such a short time with that I guess we’re supposed to think that’s cool and hope for more next time. Plus, why does a character spot the tattoo on Odenkirk’s wrist and completely freak out!? If you want answers to any of these questions, Nobody isn’t going to answer them, but maybe the sequel will!
Of course Nobody is first and foremost an action movie, and Odenkirk apparently spent 2 years training for the role. There’s a trio of main action sequences which take the form of the bus fight, the Russian mobs raid on Odenkirk’s home, and the extended finale that plays out like John Woo was told to make a movie mixing MacGyver with Home Alone. It’s an entertaining mix and gets suitably bloody, with inevitable echoes of John Wick whenever a gun is picked up, but also just enough of its own unique flavor to make it stand out. The lack of any one on one fight does feel like a missing ingredient, and similar to Michael Nyqvist in John Wick, here Russian actor Aleksey Serebryakov fails to register as a particularly threatening villain, even when he’s slicing up one poor lackeys face in an attempt to prove he is.
By the time the credits role Nobody feels like it’s achieved its goal of delivering a straight up action flick, but I couldn’t shake the thought that writer Derek Kolstad is assuming we’ll see more, and as a result has given us less. The end result may be a lean little action flick that definitely doesn’t outstay its welcome, however its also not likely to linger around in the memory for longer than a few hours after watching it. From the perspective of offering up 90 minutes of unpretentious action minus any gratuitous CGI or unnecessary sub-plots though, Nobody arguably proves that it’s a somebody.
Paul Bramhall’s Rating: 6/10
Until John Wicks 4 & 5 come along, this will do very nicely. Watched this with a goofy grin pasted on my face for 90 mins. NOBODY is not only a gleefully entertaining action movie, but like JW, it captures the joy of watching action movies. Every 87eleven precision-choreographed piece of mayhem does a delightful pirouette on your eyeballs with the way it’s shot and edited with such clarity it goddamn takes your breath away.
NOBODY is also frequently, very very funny. Odenkirk has done the work and really sells the character. And Christopher Lloyd is never not entertaining. But Damn! Took me awhile to realize Hutch’s father-in-law is Michael Freaking Ironside!!!!
All these pluses help me overlook the few minuses, like the Laaaaaaaame Ass Baddie. And also Hutch’s wife’s curious reserve. Why did things cool off between them? Did she always know he was a killer and is worried of a relapse hence the “shield” of pillows between them? Or are we supposed to believe a wife starts to find her husband less attractive because he’s perfectly decent, kind, attentive and loyal but not exactly a hotbed of excitement, unpredictability and smoldering masculine intensity?
Glad you enjoyed it KayKay! It was definitely an entertaining ride, and I enjoyed the 80’s action movie stylings of the finale, wherein not a single one of the small army of heavily armed bad guys can hit our protagonists save for the main villain! I’m not sure if that was intentional or not, but it added a certain old-school charm to proceedings.
I felt exactly the same way about Michael Ironside, so much so that after watching it I literally typed “Michael Ironside Nobody” into Google Image search, and couldn’t believe he was the father-in-law!
“here credited only as Bus Goon, which is probably what his acting range is best suited to”
Ouch! Savage burn!
But you’re right
After the KICKBOXER remakes and JIU JITSU, I’ll also be perfectly happy if for the rest of my life, I only ever see Alain Moussi as THUG #3, PUNK #2 or 3rd NINJA FROM THE LEFT in movies.
The man has all the charisma of peeling paint.
You can check Moussi out in another of his legendary roles in 2017’s ‘Kill Order’. 😛
Hahahaha…I believe Moussi WAS 3rd Ninja from the left in that movie. Kinda enjoyed it. Decent fights, but it over ambitiously ends on a cliffhanger, anticipating a sequel we’ll most likely never get:-)
Believe it or not, the sequel is already here. 🙂 ‘Enhanced’ hit VOD on March 26th and lands on DVD May 18th!
Wow! I didn’t know Enhanced was the sequel to Kill Order. Although judging by the trailer, the focus seems to have shifted to another character. Will check it out.
it’s not a direct sequel, it’s more of a “what if” style spinoff in the same universe, think Sicario 2 to Sicario 1
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOW ! Talk about disagreeing hard with a review of yours for the first time in a while Paul, I fucking loved this movie, literally for every reason you listed as to why the character is not relatable and compelling IS PRECISELY what I found relatable and compelling, the opening montage alone makes me relate to this guy harder than all 3 John Wick movies COMBINED. I think at the core of it:
Nobody’s story is a lot deeper in terms of themes and cliches it explores and deconstructs than say John Wick, ultimately Nobody differs from JW in that – JW is a story about a guy with nothing to lose brought back UNWILLINGLY out of retirement to kick ass, whereas NOBODY is actually about a guy with a lot to loose but with a strong addiction for the thrills and adrenaline of his past life and the new family life has rendered him feeling useless and to some degree, emasculated, therefore in the film he’s LOOKING, WILLINGLY for any excuse to get back to his old life and that is fucking awesome, it’s like an action movie version of Joker (2019), where the character’s mundane life and bullied treatment by those close to him ignite a psychotic need for a violent catharsis that you just DON’T see in action movies like this, in films like this there’s always ample motivation for the main character to do what they’re doing throughout the film, slaughtering thousands for revenge, redemption or other external factors, whereas in Nobody the factors are INTERNAL, and the external motivations for the character are nothing but excuses to let one’s inner, true self out (you might think I’m digging too much into this, but this is actually all very easy to pick-up on subtext throughout the film and speaks to both Naishuller’s capabilities as the director and Kolstad as the writer, to create a character this dramatically different in approach and design from John Wick).
There’s a sense of psychotic thrill and joy in Odenkirk’s Hutch that’s not present in JW
and it’s the actions of this character’s own volition that bring more trouble than he anticipated over the course of the film. In many ways Nobody is Anti-John Wick, in that it’s really a story about the dangers of people with immense talent that long for unleashing the beast they’ve laid dormant for years and I find THAT, in this day and age of goody-two shoes or “hitmen with hearts of gold” characters INCREDIBLY refreshing, to see a character like this just embrace who he is and confront his violent past in a way that is cathartic both to him and the audience (at least it was to me).
And that is without even mentioning the amazing action sequences throughout the film, THAT BUS FIGHT ? Fucking Iko Uwais’ “Headshot” is looking at it going: 0_0. That fight sets a not just a certain level of expectations in terms of the quality of action to be seen throughout the rest of the film, but also the kind of tone we can expect, Bob’s Hutch is not an invincible, highly proficient killer like Keanu’s John Wick, he takes A LOT of punishment and the clever subversions within the choreography with truly inventive use of the environment are amazing, leading to moments of simultaneous pain and hilarity, like: Bob hitting his head on the side of a wall in the bus after receiving a punch, or him wrapping a “stop request” alarm wire around a thug and battering him against a window forcing the all too familiar flashing sign and sound of requested stop to appear on the bus tabloid, something that many commuters of public transport are acutely aware of (and probably sick and tired of hearing lol), other action scenes are accompanied through the superb mix of Ilya’s amazing song choices such as: Pat Benatar’s Heartbreaker bringing a rock’n’roll swagger and badassery to a car chase, or Luis Armostrong’s “What a Wonderful World” accompanying a slow roast to death by fire in a house. Not to omit David Buckley’s own composed score however, which strikes an intricate balance between drums, rock, electronic and sometimes even my favorite SYNTHS 🙂 It’s all really energizing stuff that gets the adrenaline pumping real quick, real fast and sustains it over the course of the film’s incredibly brisk runtime and pacing. My one and only cavviate with the film I’d say is that there isn’t a stronger closure with the family, particularly the kids by the end of the film, something that we do get with Hutch’s wife Becca, with good progression in terms of how their relationship develops and finds the necessary spark needed to rekindle the kind of past and lovelife these two used to share, culminating in a scene just shortly after the bus fight, where the conversation shifts gears to maintenance of intimacy and romance in a marriage that has spanned so many years and that has beaten both partners into submission with the kind of settled lifestyle both find themselves in to be now. That conversation felt straight out of a great drama show or a movie about similar relationships and characters, a scene so good in an action movie however, offering this much depth and humanity with these kinds of characters, in a genre where such topics and relationships are put on a backburner for all the action is AMAZING to see. Returning to the cavviate though, I wish similar scenes of compelling redemption and warmth where achieved with the son and daughter in the family (there IS a good scene with the son where Bob praises him for having his back during the home invasion but it is far too short) not to mention that at some point in the story, the kids just disappear entirely and that plot thread is just left hanging with no resolution whatsoever.
Last but not least I can not NOT mention the amazing cinematography by Pawel Pogorzelski, this man is amazing, having worked on horror classics (at this point) such as Hereditary and Midsommar, there’s an amazing sense of personality and mood to each scene, that are so well-lit and delivered with such efficiently brilliant camerawork, it almost looks like a South Korean production that just happens to be set in the West. In particular there’s a wide shot of Bob looming over a large stash of money burning and it is such a beautiful, mesmerizing shot, I had my breath stolen for just an instant and thought of what a good poster shot it’d make, other shots are more experimental and cool, like the camera attached to the side of a pistol as it’s flying through the air to be caught by a person, or a oner introducing the villain in the coolest fashion possible, from street to club to the dance floor, it’s all visually fantastic and varied, whilst at the same time avoiding the main stylistic signatures in terms of color palette of the John Wick franchise, eschewing the neons and heightened colors to deliver something all its own and unique.
Lastly I’m sorry but I also can’t NOT talk about the Russian cast in this movie, FINALLY, AT FUCKING LAST we get AUTHENTIC RUSSIAN ACTORS PLAYING RUSSIAN CHARACTER SPEAKING RUSSIAN in a way that doesn’t make me want to barf as someone who comes from that region and knows the language, THANK YOU ILYA !
Overall, fucking love this movie, 9/10 for me !
Thanks for sharing your detailed thoughts as always Andrew, wow, 9/10! I did enjoy what we get to see of Odenkirk’s character, for me though it was just a little too underdeveloped. It could well be the case that we’ll learn much more in the assumed sequel, but an audience should be left wanting a sequel, not needing one. The fact that he craved to return to his more violent days was cool, it’s just an action movie after all, but it would have resonated a lot more for me if the connection was understood as to why he attempted to put them behind him in the first place.
It’s a story that’s been done plenty of times before, from Viggo Mortensen in ‘A History of Violence’ to Won Bin in ‘The Man from Nowhere’, and allowing the audience a glimpse into the characters past adds that richness and additional layer to make them more believable (even if not necessarily relatable). Here we just get a father (figure?) who’s basically an older version of himself, and RZA as a brother who we know nothing about, so obviously there’s some backstory to be told, and I couldn’t help but feel that it was something of a cop out to not explore it in the slightest. Ambiguity is fine, but here it feels like blatantly setting up for a sequel, and as I mentioned sequels should be made because they’re wanted, not needed.
As I was watching ‘Nobody’ initially I felt like Odenkirk’s character is kind of similar to John Rambo, except much more self aware of the blood soaked environment he thrives in, whereas Rambo needed to have it spelt out to him. By the time the end credits rolled though, I was left feeling like Odenkirk is a 21st century version of Paul Kersey, although admittedly the Paul Kersey we meet in ‘Death Wish 3’ more so than the first 2 entries. Here’s hoping if we do get a sequel, it’ll feature Odenkirk blowing a bad guy away at point blank range with a rocket launcher. (Disclaimer: cityonfire reserves the right to deny the existence of Eli Roth’s 2018 remake with Bruce Willis)
Yeah Nobody if not for anything else is leagues better than that terrible Death Wish remake xD
“Nobody arguably proves that it’s a somebody” 6/10
Paul, the last line of your review is pure hack-work and beneath you. Just because the genre may be in a lackluster period, shouldn’t mean you start phoning things in.. I know you love action cinema and have written many great articles for COF .. But if a film doesn’t inspire you to write something interesting, either positive or negative, don’t just crunch the keyboard for the sake of it. Go dig-up The Sweeper or Tiger Cage 3 if today’s cinema doesn’t move you.
Jesus Mike, you roasted Paul harder here than he roasts Wych Kaos’ movies xD
All good, I’m just slightly crispy. I look forward to hearing Mr. Retter’s thoughts on ‘Nobody’ rather than just my review!
I doubt I will be watching this film.. Its either not top-tier enough or not B-movie enough .. Not a fan of John Wick.. This just feels like Wick off-cuts..
It really isn’t, and it breaks my heart how many people have shared that same sentiment that it’s a John Wick rip-off, when clearly the film’s tone, humor, action and style is so much more different than the Wick franchise, people are missing out on this so much.
This movie was worth the price of admission for the bus scene alone. I loved that the hero of the story took as much of a beating as he dished out. It’s not a fantastic movie by any means but it’s still one of the most entertaining ones I’ve seen in some time. Would not complain if they made a sequel.