Jordyep

7/10

The trailer didn't do much for me, but being familiar with the director I knew it was probably going to be more clever than the marketing was letting on. Turns out I was right, Richard Linklater has clearly been studying the works of Erving Goffman and decided to make a fun hitman movie about it. The script keeps it fresh by using its central concept of role playing in a couple of different ways. It's simultaneously a psychological thriller, quirky romance and postmodern comedy. I noticed a lot of different influences (e.g. _Burn After Reading, Fargo_), but all of the elements here work together to create something that feels cohesive and fresh. For me it checks a lot of boxes a lot of films like this don't hit anymore: the leads have good chemistry, it's patient and doesn't go too crazy right from the start, characters are properly motivated and the fun concept always remains thought provoking. It's main selling point, however, is definitely Glen Powell, who's playing the type of character that I can only imagine is any actor's dream role. Some of his outfits are bordering on the ridiculous, but the performance ultimately makes every character work. Not a huge fan of the perplexing ending, and a little more bold energy could've elevated this beyond that typical Netflix feel (Linklater's naturalistic filming style, editing and score sometimes tip into bland territory here for my taste), but this is probably the best crowdpleaser to come out this summer. 6.5/10

BaconBitsServerAge

0/10

Spoilers

Overall, I have to say I had a good time watching this movie, but narratively, there seemed to be a lot that never really seems to pan out. After the resolution and epilogue, all I could focus on was the fact that the main characters are first-degree murderers who learn no moral lesson at all and face no consequences for their actions. Based on the thesis about social constructionism given at the beginning, that people become the people they pretend to be, then the main character was a good man turned into a murderer by the love for and from a sociopathic woman. Perhaps if they'd done more to set up Madison's husband as actually abusive and threatening to escalate the violence, the audience would be shown that he deserved to die. They did set up Jasper as a bad cop, and thus we are invited feel better about Gary murdering him to save his murderer girlfriend at the end. But no, the movie never show us Madison's husband as doing anything except being upset and antagonistic outside the nightclub; we are only to believe Madison's solicitation for his murder from Gary is because he is _really a bad guy_ since _she said_ he was. It is as though the movie is saying he deserved it simply because she wanted him murdered, and since she's a beautiful woman, she can't be wrong or held responsible the same way the other, ugly people who want Gary to murder people in their lives had to be. As the turn happens, Gary tells Madison that her ex-husband tried to solicit him to kill her, and therefore she goes and shoots him in the throat. **That's pre-meditated murder in the first degree--not in self-defense at all, straight up murder.** Although he did want to hire the hitman AFTER THE NIGHTCLUB incident, he was acting impulsively out of anger and emotion. Madison, on the other hand, had been planning to and calculating his death and had made up her mind when she tried to hire a hitman to murder her husband rather than leaving him. At her initial meeting with Gary the hitman, she pretends to be demure and intimidated, but the moment she starts eating his food, narratively, means she has a secret and she has the power in the scene because of it. Despite Gary feeling in control of the meeting, before the end, she had already put him on the defensive, flirted with him, and aroused his interest in her well-being. Even after he thinks he talked her out of it, she seems to walk away still wanting her husband murdered and now is also sexually excited by the sexy killer. The very act of him trying to change her mind was proof she'd already started to manipulate him. Again, let me reiterate that I like it as I was watching it, so it wasn't until the end that I realized that the narrative structure is broken and creates an end wherein Madison, the sociopathic murderer who not only has absolutely no moral arc and learns no lessons, is actually rewarded for her actions by Gary choosing to be a first-degree murderer like her. Instead of justice, they are both rewarded with a good life with children and no murder charges. So if you like stories about sociopathic women who manipulate good men who all murder people without moral hang-ups and with absolutely no negative consequences, then you'll love this one.

dumasori

0/10

**Passable** I watched this movie with low expectations, and I wasn't disappointed. This movie falls into the mid-level cheesy category, offering a fair amount of entertainment without being extraordinary. The actors are good at what they do, and the direction is also good. However, you can only do so much with a mediocre plot. Overall, watchable one time.

CinemaSerf

0/10

At this rate, Glen Powell is going to be able to pay Tom Cruise back for his flying lessons pretty swiftly! Here, he's a rather geeky teacher (Gary) who teaches philosophy at a college whilst occasionally helping out the cops with some criminal profiling. When one of their investigators "Jasper" (Austin Amelio) goes a bit too far and gets suspended, Gary gets drafted in last minute and proves quite effective at getting folks who want to bump of their nearest and dearest for $5,000 to admit their cunning plans to a well wired-up con. The more of these cases he does, the better he gets; the more fun he has dressing up and adept he becomes at assuming a range of identities. It's "Maddy" (Adria Arjona) who sets the cat amongst the pigeons when she asks him to get shot of her thuggish husband "Ray" (Evan Holtzman). He takes a shine to her and talks her out of her criminal ploy. Quickly the two are seeing each other - which is manna from heaven for the deposed "Jasper". When her husband is found dead, he thinks he knows exactly who did what and how best to exact his revenge... It's quite an entertaining romantic thriller this, providing Powell with an opportunity to charm his way through an almost two hours of cinema that is light and fluffy, completely preposterous yet based on a true character. Arjona looks like she is having a good time here, too - and the last twenty minutes are quite fun. No, it won't trouble a BAFTA jury I suspect - but it's quite enjoyable summertime fayre.

Louisa Moore - Screen Zealots

0/10

Richard Linklater‘s “Hit Man” is a film with a serious identity crisis. This genre blending disaster starts out as a wannabe goofy comedy, then veers off the rails into dark noir, finally settling on a bizarrely erotic femme-fatale rom-com. This movie is absolutely terrible, and its only saving grace is its lead’s bonafide Hollywood star power. Straight-laced professor Gary Johnson (Glen Powell) has an odd hobby: he moonlights with the New Orleans Police Department as a fake hit man. With a penchant for inhabiting different personalities and donning outrageous costumes, Gary has a knack for telling potential clients (and marks) just the right things to get them arrested. Things get complicated when he falls for Madison (Adria Arjona), a potential criminal who meets with Gary to discuss hiring him to murder her awful husband. The two start a romantic relationship in a sea of deception and moral ambiguity, which changes Gary’s life forever. It’s a great premise for a film, but Linklater just can’t make it work. While he admittedly isn’t one of my favorite directors, he completely misses the mark here. The narrative is disjointed and the tonal inconsistencies are too jarring, and no amount of talent can balance the uneven, overstuffed elements of comedy, romance, and thriller. The film struggles on just about every level, but thankfully Powell saves it from being completely unwatchable. Powell is the highlight here. His charm and versatility shines as he navigates the complex layers of his character. This is an actor who is a true chameleon, and the film at least provides a vehicle where he can showcase his range. Powell is great; the movie is not. Linklater introduces a lot of bland melodrama with the relationship between Gary and Madison and, despite a believable chemistry, it causes the film to stumble even more. With her character’s motivations being murky at best, it was impossible to feel fully invested in Madison’s relationship with Gary’s alter-ego, Ron. For a film that had the potential to be so unique, it ends up feeling generic and unsatisfying. Despite having a small theatrical release, “Hit Man” is a disappointing effort that appropriately feels right at home as a streaming title on Netflix. By: Louisa Moore / SCREEN ZEALOTS