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Review : The Man Who Killed Hitler and Then the Bigfoot (2019)

Sometimes you read a movie title, and everything you need to know about that movie is encompassed in the title.  Texas Chainsaw Massacre.  Night of the Living Dead.  Hobo With a Shotgun.  You catch my drift.  That’s why, from the moment I heard about The Man Who Killed Hitler, and Then the Bigfoot, I knew that I had to see that film.

Calvin Barr (Sam Elliot) spends the twilight of his years taking care of his dog and checking in on his younger brother Ed (Larry Miller).  He often reminisces on the love of his life, a woman named Maxine (Caitlyn FitzGerald) that he let slip away before going to World War II.  What really and truly haunts him, however, is his time as a soldier.  Calvin, even as a young man, longed for a peaceful life free of conflict, but when duty called, he answered.  His duties, however, led to him being asked to take the life of Hitler in hopes of winning the war.  Now, many years later, Calvin is tasked for a new mission from American agent Flag Pin (Ron Livingston) and Canadian agent Maple Leaf (Rizwan Manji) : killing a diseased Bigfoot (Mark Steger) to end the spread of the Nightmare Plague, a disease threatening to end civilization as we know it.

This film plays like an exercise in lore-building, where the goal is to create a modern day John Henry of sorts.  With Calvin, we are presented a man often haunted by his past during moments of reflection, and the past we are present with has a moment of ‘glory’ that exceeds the imagination.  Due to his code, his honor, and his hesitancy to be responsible for a human life, however, we are presented with a tortured individual rather than one who holds those memories with pride.  The aforementioned moments where Calvin stops at his reflection to reflect is visual poetry that resonates, with Sam Elliot’s legendary stature furthering the effectiveness of the moments.

The Man Who Killed Hitler, and Then the Bigfoot is a triple threat of sorts : a combination of a No Country For Old Men tale of a man witnessing the times change, a heightened historical drama, and a fantasy adventure.  This allows for the use of a non-narrative structure that not only gives visual subtext for pensive moments in the form of low-level PTSD triggers, but it allows for stylized shifts from one era to the next.  In terms of narrative subtext, making Calvin the man responsible for taking the lives of two monsters plays well against his timid and tender nature, as not even the most heartless man and a rabid beast give him full license and justification for taking a life with no regrets.  

The period-based nature of large sections of the film allows for distinct shifts in design and costuming that are taken full advantage of.  The deliberate pacing of the film makes the 90 minutes hold very well, where the film does not feel overly long, but it doesn’t fly by in comparison to the modern day two-plus hour film.  The score and cinematography during the titular heightened moments balances well against the personal moments, where diagetic soundtrack plays against slice of life moments in comparison.  

Sam Elliot and Aiden Turner do a fascinating parallel job portraying the complexities of Calvin Barr, with Elliot’s pensive nature and reflective regret playing well against Turner’s youthful optimism that is caged by the fear of unknowing, forcing him to take dangerous leaps physically and hold back on the emotional ones.  Caitlyn FitzGerald brings echoes of war-era unrequited love performances to the table, but builds it under a foundation of silent strength due to the unwritten rules of a bygone era.  Ron Livingston and Ritzwan Manji make an interesting ‘good cop bad cop’ pairing, with Livingston playing the American heavy, and Manji playing the curious and concerned Canadian that lacks edge.  Larry Miller and his comedic presence create a youthful vibe that plays well against the world-worn nature of Elliot, therefor bolstering his little brother performance.  Appearances by Sean Bridgers, Ellar Coltrane, Aubrey Hale, and an unforgettable performance by Mark Steger round out the proceedings.

In the end, this film may not win any awards, but it is a short and sweet piece of art that I imagine is rewarding upon repeat viewing.  Funny enough, I watched it twice before writing on it, as it spoke to me enough to revisit it before penning my thoughts about it.