Nowadays, since trailers and even loglines are so spoiler-filled, I tend to avoid them and go into a movie or a show completely blind. That way, I can be the blank canvas that the movie can project itself on. But there’s a slight problem with that process. Unless you are a soulless, emotionless individual who lives under a rock, unaffected by what’s going on around you, even if you avoid all the promotional material, there’s a good chance that you won’t be in the right mindset the film wants you to be in. Hence, you might end up disliking it despite your best efforts to be unbiased. On the rarest of occasions, though, you accidentally prepare yourself to be in the mood that the movie wants you to be in. This is that rare occasion. After watching Mission: Impossible—The Final Reckoning, I checked out Collateral. Then I rewatched all the John Wick films for Ballerina. And since K.O. has a killer club brawl and a healthy dose of violent retribution, I had no choice but to turn into that Martin Scorsese meme and say, “Absolute cinema.”
Antoine Blossier’s K.O. opens with a pro MMA fight between Bastien and Enzo. At one point, it seems like Enzo has gotten the better of Bastien, but Bastien picks up Enzo and smacks him down onto the mat a little too hard. Enzo passes away on the spot, traumatizing Bastien for life. He profusely apologizes to Emma and Leo, Enzo’s wife and son, but they explicitly tell him that he can’t be forgiven. The narrative moves forward by 2 years to show us that Bastien has retired from MMA and is earning a living by working at a quarry. He has become such a recluse that it’s hard to even find him. Still, Emma shows up at his doorstep, requesting (read: guilt-tripping) that he rescue Leo from whatever trouble he is in. Bastien, realizing that this is his only way to atone for his sin, rides to Marseille. There he comes into contact with Alaoui, the police officer who had employed Leo as her informant and is also looking for Leo. They join forces to get to Leo before the dreaded Manchour gang, led by Abdel and Driss, kills him for witnessing a high-level crime.
I’m going to be honest, K.O. has a pretty cliché plot. You have a disgraced primary protagonist. There’s a vengeful secondary protagonist. A kid needs to be rescued. And you have an antagonist, surrounded by thugs, who simply don’t know the definition of mercy, or maybe they do know, and they’ve made it their life’s mission to defy it. So, you’re free to disparage the movie based on its premise alone. I couldn’t because I found a beating heart and some relevant commentary inside its supposedly tired narrative. Bastien’s need to not only give himself a second chance but also pave the way for a better future for Leo filled me with optimism because we live in an era where cynicism and self-centeredness are seen as enviable traits. There’s a really poignant conversation between Leo and Bastien, regarding grief, guilt, anger, and the importance of channeling it in a positive direction, that really got to me. Alaoui’s determination and grit feel like a breath of fresh air in an otherwise male-dominated genre. On top of all that, the movie shows that crime rates in any city cannot rise without the involvement of the police. If you want to make your backyard crime-free, you have to clean up your law enforcers first.
K.O. undoubtedly takes its time to get going, but once it gains momentum, it doesn’t stop until it has turned every bad guy in existence into mush. Blossier treats his first act like a pure investigative thriller in the vein of Se7en or Memories of Murder. Then he kicks off the second act with a balls-to-the-walls hand-to-hand fight sequence set in a neon-drenched club, complete with pulsating techno music. I am a sucker for these because of Collateral and John Wick. I also love the fact that the trifecta of lean-mean Netflix action extravaganzas featuring a club brawl is finally complete; the other two entries being Sixty Minutes and Havoc. By the way, Blossier and his team’s choreography, editing, and cinematography seem to be heavily inspired by Gareth Evans and Indonesian action cinema. The jittery camera contrasted by the nearly invisible cuts makes for such a visceral and satisfying viewing experience. As for the third act, Blossier seemingly tips his hat to John Carpenter’s Assault on Precinct 13 with a fight for the ages. Everything from shotguns to wood splinters are used as weapons. The stunt work done by the actors and their doubles is nothing short of fantastic. The color grading and the sound design are perfect. What can I say? The movie had me hooting and hollering.
Alan Ritchson’s version of Jack Reacher is pretty agile and athletic despite his monstrous build. But if you have ever imagined what Jack Reacher would look like in a Gareth Evans film, then Ciryl Gane’s Bastien in K.O. is just the thing for you. He is a real-life MMA fighter, and it’s a treat to see him move with such ferocity and dexterity. But, thankfully, he is not invincible. He gets tired. He gets overpowered. And, most importantly, he needs help when he’s in a sticky situation. I have already talked about the club brawl and the fight at the precinct. However, one of my most favorite moments is when Bastien is hurtling down a hallway that is about to be crowded by thugs, prompting audiences to expect him to go into Oldboy or Daredevil (the Charlie Cox one) mode. Which is fair because you have just seen him punch a scooty rider and the guy sitting pillion so hard that they’re cartoonishly launched into the air. That said, in order to maintain a level of believability, cops intervene. And instead of expressing disappointment, Bastien is relieved because there was no way in hell he would’ve survived that. That not only makes the character relatable but also shows that the actor isn’t as egocentric as other wrestlers-turned-superstars.
Alice Belaidi is excellent, and her chemistry with Gane is off the charts. The manner in which she handles herself in that final sequence is simply jaw-dropping. Also, the comical difference in Belaidi and Gane’s stature offers a unique challenge to the stunt team as well as the actors. You see, due to the narrative, both of them have to be in the same set pieces, which means that the characters are facing the same group of thugs. Belaidi can’t be paired with tiny henchmen while Gane goes after the big henchmen without the whole thing coming off as contrived. So, it’s really interesting to witness Blossier and his team consistently find ways to highlight both of their strengths and weaknesses by tinkering with their stamina, their fighting style, and the shortcuts they take (or don’t take) to get out of a situation. Foued Nabba is menacing. He runs the risk of becoming one-note, but that third act saves the day for him. Ibrahima Keita, who has worked in John Wick 4 and Mission: Impossible—Fallout (2 of my favorite action films of all time), is scary. His punch-up with Gane is insanely entertaining. Despite his limited screen time, Meleaume Paquin is really impactful. Anne Azoulay, Virgile Bramly, Malone Ettori, and the rest of the supporting cast of K.O. are splendid.
There’s a good chance that K.O. will be negatively reviewed by a lot of people because it’s too “generic” and “unoriginal.” Those are valid criticisms. But, as mentioned before, I sat down to watch this while the club brawls from Collateral and the John Wick franchise were playing in my head. So, when I got more of that, I couldn’t really bring myself to scrutinize the plot. By the time the movie got to its finale, as an action fan, I was so satisfied I was practically levitating off my seat. If I’m being too biased to be taken seriously, that’s fine. However, if all of this sounds like a recommendation, feel free to check out K.O. on Netflix. By the way, after the Lost Bullet trilogy, Ad Vitam, AKA, Revenge, Under Paris, Athena, and now K.O., French action cinema is really thriving on this particular streaming platform. Although I would’ve loved to watch all of them on the big screen, I’m really glad that we are getting so many amazing entries every year. I don’t know how the French feel about it, but I’m a happy customer.
