3 Days to Kill
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''3 Days to Kill'' is a 2014 action thriller film directed by McG and written by Luc Besson and Adi Hasak. It stars
Kevin Costner Kevin Michael Costner (born January 18, 1955) is an American actor, producer, film director and musician. He has received various accolades, including two Academy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and two Screen Actor ...
, Amber Heard,
Hailee Steinfeld Hailee Steinfeld (born December 11, 1996) is an American actress and singer. She is the recipient of various accolades, including a Peabody Award, and nominations for an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, and a Golden Globe Award. S ...
,
Connie Nielsen Connie Inge-Lise Nielsen (born 3 July 1965) is a Danish actress. She has starred as Lucilla in the film ''Gladiator'' (2000) and as Hippolyta in the DC Extended Universe, and in the films ''Wonder Woman'' (2017), '' Justice League'' (2017), '' ...
, Richard Sammel, and Eriq Ebouaney. It was released on 21 February 2014, received mixed reviews, and grossed $52.6 million against its $28 million budget.


Plot

American CIA agent Ethan Renner works with a team to capture the Albino, the lieutenant to an arms trafficker (called the Wolf) who is selling a
dirty bomb A dirty bomb or radiological dispersal device is a radiological weapon that combines radioactive material with conventional explosives. The purpose of the weapon is to contaminate the area around the dispersal agent/conventional explosion with ...
to terrorists in a hotel in
Belgrade Belgrade ( , ;, ; names in other languages) is the capital and largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and the crossroads of the Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. Nearly 1,166,763 mi ...
. The Albino deduces the trap when he recognizes one of Renner's fellow agents (disguised as a chambermaid), whom he kills. Renner, suddenly dizzy as he pursues The Albino, only manages to cripple him by shooting him in the leg, then blacks out, allowing the Albino to escape. Meanwhile, elite CIA assassin Vivi Delay, a "Top Shelf agent", has been personally assigned by the Director to kill the Wolf. Vivi monitors the operation and suspects Renner has unknowingly seen the Wolf. Renner is nearly disabled by an extreme cough, which is diagnosed as terminal
glioblastoma Glioblastoma, previously known as glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), is one of the most aggressive types of cancer that begin within the brain. Initially, signs and symptoms of glioblastoma are nonspecific. They may include headaches, personality ...
cancer that has spread to his lungs. He is given only a few months to live, and will not see the next Christmas. For decades he has kept his dangerous career a carefully guarded secret from his wife Christine and daughter Zooey, at the cost of losing them. He decides to spend his remaining time trying to fix his relationship with his estranged daughter, and if possible, his ex-wife. He returns to Paris, where he and his family live separately, to find the
Réunion Réunion (; french: La Réunion, ; previously ''Île Bourbon''; rcf, label= Reunionese Creole, La Rényon) is an island in the Indian Ocean that is an overseas department and region of France. It is located approximately east of the island o ...
family of Jules is squatting in his apartment. He is told by the police that he is not permitted to evict indigent squatters until after the winter. He makes an awkward reconnection with Christine, and tells her of his terminal illness. She allows him to reconnect with Zooey, and when she has to go out of the country on business, she agrees to let him look after Zooey. Vivi recruits him to find and kill the Wolf, in exchange for an experimental drug that could extend his life significantly. Renner reluctantly accepts, to get more time with his family. Vivi tells him the way to trap the Wolf is by getting the Albino, in turn by getting his accountant, in turn by kidnapping the gang's limousine driver. All the while Renner is fighting the hallucinogenic effect of the medicine, which occurs whenever his heart rate goes too high, and which he can only control by consuming alcohol. He must also deal with Zooey's school problems, including her habit of lying so she can sneak out partying. He manages to keep her out of trouble, and slowly reestablishes a father relationship with her, which impresses his wife. He tracks the Wolf and the Albino into the subway, but they gain the upper hand when he is disabled by the hallucinations. The Albino attempts to kill him by pushing him in front of an oncoming train, but Renner manages to push the Albino on the track instead. The Wolf escapes, then contacts a business partner who can help him to flee the country. The family is invited to a party thrown by Zooey's boyfriend's father, who happens to be the Wolf's business partner. Renner manages to protect Christine and Zooey, kill all the Wolf's men, and trap the Wolf in an elevator before breaking the cables, causing the cabin to free-fall to the ground. The Wolf survives, severely injured, but Renner is again disabled and, also feeling guilty for all the damage his work has done to his family, he's suddenly unable to pull the trigger, and drops his gun where the Wolf can get it. Vivi intervenes and kicks the gun back to Renner, telling him to finish the job and kill the Wolf, but he decides not to, because "I promised my wife I'd quit." Vivi then kills the Wolf. At last retired, Renner survives to Christmas, which he is spending at a beach house with Zooey and Christine. He discovers a small, red wrapped gift package, which contains another vial of the cancer medicine. Vivi is seen on a hill behind the house smiling as Renner opens the package.


Cast

*
Kevin Costner Kevin Michael Costner (born January 18, 1955) is an American actor, producer, film director and musician. He has received various accolades, including two Academy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and two Screen Actor ...
as Ethan Renner * Amber Heard as Vivi Delay, one of the CIA's elite assassins *
Hailee Steinfeld Hailee Steinfeld (born December 11, 1996) is an American actress and singer. She is the recipient of various accolades, including a Peabody Award, and nominations for an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, and a Golden Globe Award. S ...
as Zooey Renner, Ethan's estranged sixteen-year-old daughter *
Connie Nielsen Connie Inge-Lise Nielsen (born 3 July 1965) is a Danish actress. She has starred as Lucilla in the film ''Gladiator'' (2000) and as Hippolyta in the DC Extended Universe, and in the films ''Wonder Woman'' (2017), '' Justice League'' (2017), '' ...
as Christine Renner, Ethan's ex-wife * Richard Sammel as the Wolf,
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...
arms trafficker * Marc Andréoni as Mitat Yilmaz * Eriq Ebouaney as Jules, a Réunion man whose family squats in Ethan's apartment * Tómas Lemarquis as the Albino, the Wolf's lieutenant * Raymond J. Barry as the CIA Director * Jonathan Barbezieux as Louis *
Jonas Bloquet Jonas Bloquet (born 10 July 1992) is a Belgian actor, known for his roles as Jonas in '' Private Lessons'' (2009), which earned him a Magritte Award nomination for Most Promising Actor, Vincent Leblanc in ''Elle'' (2016), for which he was nomin ...
as Hugh, Zooey's boyfriend * Rupert Wynne-James as Hugh's father, who happens to be the Wolf's partner


Production

On 7 August 2012, '' Deadline'' reported that
Kevin Costner Kevin Michael Costner (born January 18, 1955) is an American actor, producer, film director and musician. He has received various accolades, including two Academy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and two Screen Actor ...
had been offered the role of Ethan Renner, a government assassin in the McG-directed film. The film, set in France, was scripted by Luc Besson and Adi Hasak, with
EuropaCorp EuropaCorp S.A. (stylised in opening logo as EUROPA CORP.) is a French motion picture company headquartered in Saint-Denis, a northern suburb of Paris, and one of a few full service independent studios that both produces and distributes feature ...
having produced while Relativity Media has North American rights. On 2 October 2012, it was confirmed that actor Costner had closed the deal to star as lead in the film. On 29 November 2012,
Hailee Steinfeld Hailee Steinfeld (born December 11, 1996) is an American actress and singer. She is the recipient of various accolades, including a Peabody Award, and nominations for an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, and a Golden Globe Award. S ...
joined the cast of the film as the female lead, and the film began production in early 2013. On 13 December, Amber Heard also joined the cast. Later, on 7 January 2013,
Connie Nielsen Connie Inge-Lise Nielsen (born 3 July 1965) is a Danish actress. She has starred as Lucilla in the film ''Gladiator'' (2000) and as Hippolyta in the DC Extended Universe, and in the films ''Wonder Woman'' (2017), '' Justice League'' (2017), '' ...
was added to the cast.


Filming

On 7 January 2013, crews were filming scenes in
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...
and
Belgrade Belgrade ( , ;, ; names in other languages) is the capital and largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and the crossroads of the Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. Nearly 1,166,763 mi ...
, and shooting wrapped in April. Some scenes in Paris were filmed in the studios and in the central nave of the Cité du Cinéma, founded by Luc Besson in Saint-Denis. Scenes in Belgrade were filmed in front of
Hotel Jugoslavija Hotel Jugoslavija ( sr-Cyrl, Хотел Југославија) in Belgrade is one of the oldest luxurious Serbian hotels. It is located in the Zemun municipality. The hotel was opened in 1969 as "one of the most comfortable and most luxurious" ...
.


Release

On 31 January 2013, photos from the set of the film were released. In November 2013, stills from the film were released. On 17 December 2013, the studio released the first trailer and the poster for the film. On 30 January 2014, Relativity released a new Super Bowl 2014 spot. On 28 May 2013, Relativity set a release date of 14 February 2014 for the film. Later, on 30 October, the film's date was shifted back a week, to 21 February 2014.


Critical response

, ''3 Days to Kill'' holds a 28% approval rating on
Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wan ...
, based on 119 reviews with an average rating of 4.38/10. The site's consensus states: "''3 Days to Kill'' uneasily mixes technically accomplished action sequences with an underdeveloped family conflict." On
Metacritic Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...
, the film has a score of 40 out of 100, based on 30 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews" from critics. Audiences surveyed by
CinemaScore CinemaScore is a market research firm based in Las Vegas. It surveys film audiences to rate their viewing experiences with letter grades, reports the results, and forecasts box office receipts based on the data. Background Ed Mintz founded Ci ...
gave the film a grade B on scale of A to F. Geoff Berkshire of '' Variety'' wrote: "The lukewarm family dynamics sit awkwardly alongside equally underwhelming action sequences."
Mark Kermode Mark James Patrick Kermode (, ; ; born 2 July 1963) is an English film critic, musician, radio presenter, television presenter and podcaster. He is the chief film critic for ''The Observer'', contributes to the magazine '' Sight & Sound'', pr ...
in ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers '' The Observer'' and '' The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the ...
'' gave the film one star out of five, describing it as "pitiful".


Box office

''3 Days to Kill'' grossed $12,242,218 in its opening weekend across 2872 theaters, finishing in second place behind ''
The Lego Movie ''The Lego Movie'' is a 2014 computer-animated adventure comedy film written and directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller from a story by Lord, Miller, and Dan and Kevin Hageman. Based on the Lego line of construction toys, its story focu ...
'' ($31.3 million). The film grossed a domestic total of $30,697,999 and an international total of $22,562,231, bringing its total gross to $53,260,230.


References


External links

* * * * {{Authority control 2014 films 2014 action thriller films French action thriller films American action thriller films Films about cancer Films about the Central Intelligence Agency Films about terrorism in Europe Films directed by McG Films set in Paris Films set in France Films set in Serbia Films shot in Paris Films shot in Serbia Wonderland Sound and Vision films EuropaCorp films Films produced by Luc Besson Relativity Media films English-language French films Films set in Belgrade Films shot in Belgrade Squatting in film 2010s American films 2010s French films