NEW YORK (CNS) -- Whatever point there might be to "You Were Never Really Here" (Amazon), this adaptation of the Jonathan Ames novella about a stressed-out, self-loathing hitman from writer-director Lynne Ramsay is adrift in a lurid quagmire of immorality.

Joaquin Phoenix plays assassin-for-hire Joe. He's been traumatized, flashbacks show us, by a violent father during childhood and later by military combat and a stretch as an FBI agent.

Heavily scarred in body and mind and living with his dementia-stricken, unnamed mother (Judith Roberts) in a rundown apartment, Joe barely ekes out a living, always paid in cash through an intermediary, and often contemplating suicide.

There's one big twist: Joe's weapon of choice is not a gun, but rather a large ball-peen hammer for smashing heads. Each job sends him to a hardware store for a new one.

His is not the righteous fury of the mythological Thor, however. The novella notes of the hammer: "Left very little evidence, excellent in close quarters, and seemed to frighten everyone." This is true in the film as well, although Ramsay keeps the splatter factor low.

Most of the run time is taken up with long, slow close-ups of Phoenix's bearded, tortured face and shots of squalid nighttime streets devoid of hope to show Joe's isolation and emotional pain.

Joe's reputation for efficient discretion attracts a New York state senator, Albert Votto (Alex Manette), who is running for governor and trying to avoid scandal and entanglement with the police. Votto's 13-year-old daughter, Nina (Ekaterina Samsonov), is said to have been groomed by sexual predators online, and is now captive in a brothel of underage girls.

Any resemblance, past this point, to the plot of 1976's "Taxi Driver" is superficial as Joe commences slaying, only to find that he's also put his mother's life in jeopardy in an unexpected way.

The idea that rescuing Nina through slaughter can somehow bring back the spark of life for Joe and thus represent his redemption is as deplorable as it is twisted.

The film contains skewed values, much gory physical and gun violence, rear male nudity, mature references, including to suicide and the sexual exploitation of underage girls, and frequent rough language. The Catholic News Service classification is O -- morally offensive. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is R -- restricted. Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian.

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Jensen is a guest reviewer for Catholic News Service.

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CAPSULE REVIEW

"You Were Never Really Here" (Amazon)

Writer-director Lynne Ramsay's adaptation of the Jonathan Ames novella about a stressed-out, self-loathing hitman (Joaquin Phoenix) gets lost in a quagmire of immorality. Hired by a New York state senator (Alex Manette) whose 13-year-old daughter (Ekaterina Samsonov) is being held captive in a brothel of underage girls, the assassin sets out to rescue her through slaughter. The fact that Ramsay's script presents this as an opportunity for him to recapture the spark of life and find redemption is as deplorable as it is twisted. Skewed values, much gory physical and gun violence, rear male nudity, mature references, including to suicide and the sexual exploitation of underage girls, and frequent rough language. The Catholic News Service classification is O -- morally offensive. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is R -- restricted. Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian.

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CLASSIFICATION

"You Were Never Really Here" (Amazon) -- Catholic News Service classification, O -- morally offensive. Motion Picture Association of America rating, R -- restricted. Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian.