When it comes to wrestlers-turned-actors, there aren’t that many big screen successes to consider. Perhaps the most obvious exception is Dwayne Johnson whose movie career has catapulted him into being the highest paid actor in Hollywood. John Cena has also made the transition although (minus a couple of outliers) he seems hopelessly attached to cornball comedies which can be a good or bad thing depending on your opinions of them.

And then you have Dave Bautista, the hardest to gauge of the three. He has mostly thrived in supporting roles and has benefitted from working with several prominent directors. But his leading performances have been a lot shakier. His latest film, “The Killer’s Game” doesn’t really challenge him and at times even handcuffs him. But Bautista makes for a formidable lead and sells his character well. It’s too bad the secondhand material lets him down, especially in the numbing second half where the film’s overcooked ideas ultimately fizzle out.

Stop me if you’ve heard this before. Bautista plays Joe Flood, a lethal but principled assassin who wants out of the game after finding true love. But if you’ve watched any of the many assassin movies out there, you know killing-for-hire isn’t a vocation you can easily walk away from. Such is the case for Joe. That means he will have to kill a lot of people in numerous showy and ultra-violent ways if he is to ever enjoy a happy retirement.

The story is written by Rand Ravich and James Coyne who are adapting Jay Bonansinga’s 1997 novel of the same name. To their credit they do attempt to add some layers to what is a fairly conventional story. Unfortunately most of them are incredibly silly and it’s often hard to determine if the silliness is unintentional or by design. That’s because director J.J. Perry puts so much effort into emulating movies like “John Wick” that he loses the balance between action and comedy.

The movie kicks off in Budapest, Hungary where Joe Flood is carrying out a his latest hit. He kills his target but things don’t go smoothly. A shootout ensues which sends the crowd running for the exits. In the chaos, Joe saves a ballet dancer named Maize (Sofia Boutella) from being trampled. Circumstances lead to the two meeting again, having dinner, and eventually falling in love. As their relationship gets more serious, Joe finds himself in a tough spot. Does he leave the only life he’s ever known? Does he come clean and tell Maize what he does for a living?

Unfortunately for Joe he has bigger problems. He’s been suffering from debilitating headaches which leads him to see a doctor who informs him that he has a rapid and incurable form of dementia. Given only three months to live, Joe decides to end his life. He meets with his mentor and handler Zvi (Ben Kingsley) to help settle his affairs including leaving everything he has to Maize. He even makes her the beneficiary of his sizable insurance policy.

But here’s the catch – Maize won’t collect any money if Joe kills himself. So he does what anyone would do – he puts out a contract on himself. But in an even more absurd turn of events, Joe gets a call from his doctor who informs him that his test results had been mixed up with another patient’s and that he is actually perfectly healthy. He attempts to cancel the contract but is thwarted by an old enemy, Marianna (Pom Klementieff).

The bulk of the second half follows Joe as he fends off an array of fellow assassins from around the globe. Perry tries hard to follow John Wick’s style and brutality but misses the mark on both. He introduces a colorful collection of killers, each with their own over-the-top personality. But all feel like caricatures and never really register. And most are dispatched through an array of violent methods marked by obvious digital blood sprays that are often more distracting than convincing.

“The Killer’s Game” throws in a few more tricks in an attempt to add some flash – the use of split-screens, bold fonts stamped on the screen, etc. But they do little to dress up what is a pretty ordinary action-comedy that loses steam the longer it sticks around. Die-hard fans of Dave Bautista may have some fun with it. But for everyone else, it’s a movie you’ve seen countless times before, but with different faces. ”The Killer’s Game” is in theaters now.

VERDICT – 2 STARS