Based on the 1973 novel Cogan’s Trade, by George V. Higgins, Killing Them Softly centers around the effects of a mysterious poker game heist. Brad Pitt plays Jackie Cogan, a folk music-loving mob enforcer, who is called in to find the suspected culprits.
Directed by Andrew Dominik, Killing Them Softly is a crime drama that portrays the gangster life in the wake of the recession. Set during the 2008 election, political commentary and presidential speeches are a major part of the film’s narrative. Killing Them Softly puts forth a thought-provoking critique of contemporary American society.
Talking about his character in the film, Brad Pitt says in an official release, “I play Jackie Cogan, a professional enforcer who investigates a heist that went down during a mob-protected poker game. I am the smooth operator who is ‘hired to kill’ in this brutal crime drama full of bad men. The film is an adaptation of George V Higgins’ novel Cogan’s Trade, with the action from the ’70s brought down to depict the 2008 financial crisis. So in that sense, Cogan belongs to the modern social setting.”