First Kill (2017)

First Kill has a lean, backwoods urgency that turns a “family trip” premise into a tight, ticking-clock thriller, where every decision feels like it costs something. Steven C. Miller keeps the pace moving with scrappy chases through woods and small-town streets, and the film’s best pleasure is watching Hayden Christensen play an ordinary guy forced to find nerve and wits he didn’t know he had. Bruce Willis brings a cool, familiar authority to the proceedings, and the story slips in a few smart detours that keep it from feeling like just another straight-to-video kidnapping plot. It’s not a deep character study and it won’t convert people who dislike gritty, workmanlike thrillers, but if you want a brisk crime ride with solid tension and a committed lead, it delivers.

First Kill is aiming for a lean, backwoods hostage thriller with a family-man-turned-reluctant-hero vibe and a small-town crime conspiracy simmering underneath. The problem is it plays like a checklist of familiar beats—kidnapping, crooked cops, “one last chance to be a good dad”—with twists you’ll see coming a mile away and a lot of exposition doing the heavy lifting instead of tension. Bruce Willis brings a bit of hard-edged presence and the setup has a solid, pulpy hook, but the execution is flat and the suspense rarely builds to anything truly gripping. If you’re just after an easy, undemanding crime thriller to have on in the background, it’ll do; if you want sharp writing, real surprises, or standout action, you’re probably better off skipping it.