You know the familiar old action movie trope of “aging hitman needs to do one last job before retiring”. It’s a formula, definitely, but tried and true.
The Old Woman with the Knife is pretty much that same formula, only with a hitwoman. You wouldn’t necessarily think that would change the whole game, but it really does feel like a fresh take on an old idea.
“Hornclaw” (Hyeyoung Lee, No Blood, No Tears) is a contract killer who accidentally found her path as a young woman. After killing an attacker in self defense, she stumbled into the attention of a clandestine organization that specializes in ethical assassination, accepting contracts for deserving targets such as high-level criminals. They get paid, and the world’s no poorer for the loss of a scumbag. Now, fifty years later, Hornclaw is revered and feared – but her world is changing.
Her company seems less interested in the ethical part of ethical killing of late, and their newest hire “Bullfight”, who’s being groomed as her replacement, seems like something of a brash upstart.
Worst of all, a doctor saves her life in a moment of critical injury, but his act of kindness and glimpse into her violent lifestyle makes him a target – he’s seen and knows too much to be allowed to live.
The film’s framework is familiar, but the gender swap does imbue it with a unique perspective simply by having a female lead character. Watching her take on scores of bad guys, get physically beat up, show vulnerability in her advanced age, and display or suppress maternal instincts – it all plays a bit differently from the hitman canon.
But what ultimately sets The Old Woman with the Knife apart most of all is a ghost of the past that comes back in an unusual and compelling way; a reminder of a moment of connection that planted a seed that will yet bear fruit.
The Package
The Woman and the Knife is new on Blu-ray from Well Go USA as an MOD (burned) edition.
Special Features and Extras
- English Dub
- Trailer (1:25)
- Promotional Trailers
- Baby Assassins 3 (2:01)
- Invincible Swordsman (1:39)
- Samurai Fury (1:54)
Get it at Amazon: The Old Woman with the Knife Blu-ray
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