Dear TIFF,

Good actors. Good script. Good director. Good timing. Good job.

Good Kill is the kind of film that slides nicely into your programming. Though there's some anticipation in seeing Ethan Hawk reteam with writer/director Andrew Niccol, any expectations are tempered by the fact both men have made some less than stellar projects since Gattaca (the Ford Mustang that Hawk's character drives throughout this film was a good reminder of that). Yet the story of a U.S. drone pilot feels rich for commentary, and Niccol doesn't waste the opportunity.

Instead of delivering an over-written thriller, Niccol is more interested in exploring the malaise and disconnect between drone pilots and their targets. He creates some nice visual parallels between the battlefields of Afghanistan and the dusty Nevada base of operations that lies just outside the wild nightlife of Vegas. All the best lines go to Bruce Greenwood as the commanding officer, who rattles off catchy acronyms and golden military nuggets (like "get your revenge in first."). But it's the lines like "Don't ask me if this is a just war. To us, it's just war," that give the film a conscience and prove the script isn't operating on autopilot.