TRAILER:
“Murder Company” is a gripping crime thriller film that premiered in August 2024. Directed by acclaimed filmmaker Liam Patterson, the movie follows the story of a team of elite corporate investigators tasked with uncovering a deadly conspiracy within a powerful multinational company.
When the head of a major pharmaceutical conglomerate is found dead under suspicious circumstances, the company’s board of directors hires a specialized investigative unit to get to the bottom of the mysterious murder. The team, led by seasoned investigator Emma Reyes, must sift through a web of lies, deceit and corruption as they uncover a shocking plot involving high-level executives.
As the investigation intensifies, the investigators find themselves in grave danger, facing off against ruthless corporate assassins who will stop at nothing to protect the company’s darkest secrets. With pulse-pounding action sequences and a taut, unpredictable narrative, “Murder Company” keeps audiences on the edge of their seats until the very end.
Featuring outstanding performances from a talented cast, including Emmy Award winner Jack Sinclair and rising star Olivia Nguyen, the film has been praised by critics for its intelligent storytelling and gritty, realistic portrayal of the dangerous world of corporate espionage. “Murder Company” is a must-see for fans of sophisticated thrillers that delve into the shadowy underbelly of the business elite.
‘Murder Company’ Review: William Moseley Isn’t in Narnia Anymore, He’s Killing Nazis
Described as an untold story about true heroes, Shane Dax Taylor’s WWII actioner Murder Company is a fairly straightforward war film. Where The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare was a bombastic ass-kicker based on true events and infused with anarchism for entertainment purposes, Murder Company sticks with the familiar and rarely strays too far from the expected narrative choices. Of course, there is safety in this choice, as Taylor manages to deliver a remarkably serviceable film, though it casts a rather narrow net on its audience. Unless you’re already eager to spend eighty-six minutes immersed in the brutal, bloody horrors of warfare, there’s not much else to lure you in. Of course, if you’re looking for a healthy dose of Nazi-killing, in this case, Murder Company has the market cornered.
As with most historically-set films, Murder Company opens with three intertitles that provide a brief overview of the impending story, including the fact that this top-secret mission has never been officially acknowledged, nor are there any records that the titular “Murder Company” ever existed. They could have spared a card and simply said: historians look away, we’re inventing history to deliver an enjoyable war movie. These intertitles do a decent job of setting up what lies ahead, as the film centers around a small band of US soldiers who are sent behind enemy lines to rescue a member of the French Resistance and assassinate an elite Nazi target.
Despite being a lower-budget action film, Murder Company does have excellent visual effects, and the production has put some effort into accurately capturing the aesthetics of the time period, though it would take willful ignorance to botch the costumery of WWII. The film does make one bewildering decision: the Nazis speak with broken German dialogue, not broken English dialogue. When they’re begging for their lives in English, there isn’t a mistake to be found, but when they’re speaking German, the dialogue is stilted and juvenile. As the actors are German, it seems this may have been a weak spot in Jesse Mittelstadt’s script. Roman Schomburg makes it work, especially as no one expects depth or nuance from Nazi cannon fodder.
Murder Company (2024)
A World War II covert operation unfolds as a group of Allied operatives is tasked with infiltrating a Nazi stronghold to gather vital intelligence. Facing relentless enemy forces and navigating treacherous terrain, the team must overcome numerous obstacles and internal conflicts.
Release DateJuly 5, 2024DirectorShane Dax TaylorCastKelsey Grammer , William Moseley , Joe Anderson , Gilles Marini , Pooch HallRuntime0 MinutesMain GenreWarWritersJesse MittelstadtStudio(s)Maverick Film , Complex Corp’Murder Company’ Assembles a Strong Ensemble CastMurder Company Sneak Peek | “Orders” | Exclusive
Following the trend of its action predecessors, Murder Company has a household name, Kelsey Grammer (Frasier), attached to deliver star-power to its roster, but the film’s true strength lies within the ensemble that fills the ranks of the “Murder Company.” Grammer’s General Haskel is an indomitable force when he’s on the screen, though he’s far from a major player in the film. His most notable scenes see him forcing information out of injured enemies, and hand-waving the loss of his own soldiers.
Since The Chronicles of Narnia nearly two decades ago, William Moseley has established a decent resume for himself, including a leading role in the hit soap opera The Royals. With the role of Southern in Murder Company, Moseley trades lions, witches, and wardrobes for taking down Nazis and stepping up to lead when the opportunity arises. Where his recent Raven’s Nest failed to give Moseley a suitable enough script to work with, Murder Company serves him quite well. But the script ultimately works because of the chemistry of the cast. There’s a palpable camaraderie shared between Southern (Moseley), Smith (JoeAnderson), and Coolidge (Pooch Hall). The soldiers banter about baseball, moon over the sweethearts they left behind, and butt heads over how they should pull off their mission. With a neat runtime of only eighty-six minutes, Murder Company doesn’t have a lot of time to flesh out its characters, so it relies upon these little moments of humanity and connection to make the inevitable fallout even more tragic. Ultimately, the characters are quite paper-thin, but it’s not necessarily to the detriment of the story being told.
While one might think the band of brothers would draw the most focus, it’s actually the French Resistance officer, Daquin (Gilles Marini), who is recruited about a quarter of the way into the film, who proves to be the most compelling character in the lot. Daquin has the fewest lines, and yet, when he speaks, you listen. Marini, a French actor who has made a name for himself in American productions like Sex and the City, Daredevil, and Days of Our Lives, is undoubtedly the standout in this ensemble cast. He manages to bring a tremendous amount of depth to the role, despite being mostly relegated to sharpshooting and brooding over the tragedies in his life.
Is ‘Murder Company’ Worth Watching?
Murder Company may not be the next Saving Private Ryan, but it is a solid addition to the increasingly long list of WWII-set films and television series hitting our screens in recent years. The script may have weak points toward the middle and final acts, but it doesn’t lessen the enjoyment value whatsoever. Taylor set out to create a film that paid homage to the great war epics that preceded it, while playing within his own corner of fictitious history, and it works. While diehard WWII buffs might squabble over some of the choices that are made throughout the film, they will still come out the other end heartened by the story of heroism, bravery, and brotherhood that has been crafted here.
It may not reinvent the wheel or bring anything new to the landscape of WWII films, but Murder Company does add two wonderful performances to the resumes of Moseley and Marini, which are worth the price of admission in their own right. Moviemaking is a lot of hard work, especially filming on location in places like Bulgaria, where this was filmed. This shoot was one that required a significant portion of its production to be shot outdoors in all-terrain and all-weather, and yet, you can still feel how much fun the cast had making this, as it shines through their performances. For a lower-budget actioner, Murder Company is absolutely worth its eighty-six-minute runtime.
