Nobody is a 2021 American action-thriller drama film directed by Ilya Naishuller and written by Derek Kolstad. The film’s premise involves a bystander who intervenes to help a woman being harassed by a group of men who then becomes the target of a vengeful drug lord. Cue an ultra-violent revenge flick that is reminiscent of the John Wick franchise.
It will be impossible to ignore the John Wick connections when it comes to discussing Nobody because screenwriter Kolstad was also responsible for the former movie. Anyone who has any familiarity with the John Wick movie will remember this exchange.
Viggo: It’s not what you did, son, that angers me so. It’s who you did it to. Iosef: Who? That fucking nobody? Viggo: That “fuckin’ nobody”… is John Wick.
READ OUR ANALYSIS OF JOHN WICK.
In any case, back to the premise, the bystander of the piece – presented as a “nobody” in the first act – is Hutch Mansell (Bob Odenkirk), a working stiff with a boring life, disinterested wife and a disrespectful young son. However, when his placid existence is rudely interrupted with brutal acts of violence, Hutch’s true self is revealed – the man is a stone cold killing machine!
While the action sequences bear strong parallels with that crafted in John Wick, the main difference relates to the overall tone. While John Wick is presented in a serious semi-realistic manner, Nobody can be considered a black comedy. Part of this has to do with the Hutch character and Odenkirk’s persona. It’s almost impossible not to take the movie with a huge pinch of salt in this respect.
That’s the problem. We cannot decide whether to laugh or be revulsed by the extreme violence depicted. Or maybe that’s the whole point of Nobody. Perhaps that is precisely the genius of this strange movie. Worth checking out.
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