Joseph Gordon-Levitt playing a damaged detective in a new Prime Video crime drama called Killer Heat is something I would pay to watch on the big screen. But appears on this occasion, I’ll have to settle for watching him investigate a murder in the sun-drenched paradise of Greece on one of the best streaming services at home instead.
Everyone loves a good twisty mystery, but Killer Heat will certainly be a welcome addition to the genre with its classic noir style and idyllic Mediterranean scenery. It sees Shailene Woodley play a suspicious wife desperate to uncover a murder conspiracy in her husband’s family.
If the gripping trailer is anything to go by (see below), then Killer Heat has the potential to become one of the best Prime Video movies. On the Greek island of Crete, Penelope Vardakis (Woodley) hires private detective Nick Bali (Gordon-Levitt) to investigate the supposed accidental death of her brother-in-law Leo Vardakis (Richard Madden).
Penelope is convinced that someone in the Vardakis family is responsible for her husband Elias’ (also played by Madden) twin brother’s death and can’t trust the local police because the powerful Vardakis family owns them. Through Nick’s questioning, it soon becomes apparent that Penelope could also meet a grim fate if Elias were to discover what she’s really up to.
Killer Heat is certainly no Greek holiday as Nick discovers dark secrets and intense jealousies while the Vardakis family rule like gods. With suspicion, lies, and feuds running rampant across the island, it’s clear that anyone could be a suspect.
What else should we know about Killer Heat?
Killer Heat is based on Jo Nesbø’s 2021 short story The Jealousy Man, which follows a troubled detective with a knack for jealousy on the hunt for a man suspected of murdering his twin. However, he has his own secrets to hide.
Gordon-Levitt and Woodley reunite in Killer Heat after starring in the 2016 biographical thriller Snowden. In addition to Madden, they are also joined by Abbey Lee and Clare Holman.
This isn’t the first time Nesbø’s work has been made into a book-to-screen adaptation as Netflix announced new mystery thriller series Detective Hole, which is based on Jo Nesbø’s series of crime novels about the legendary detective Harry Hole.
Meanwhile, Michael Fassbender played the role of Hole in the 2017 movie flop The Snowman, which received a dreadful 7% Rotten Tomatoes score. But we’re sure that Killer Heat will have a better reception if we go by the success of some of the streamer’s previous original projects.
