Hit Man. Asesino por casualidad

Richard Linklater's movie career has been punctuated by intense narratives originating from everyday events. 'Hit Man' somehow achieves the opposite - it's a fluffy confection based on the exploits of a psychology professor who poses as a professional hit man.

The purpose of Gary Johnson's masquerades is to help his local police department entrap those wanting to hire a killer. The film's introductory sequences show several unconvincing restaurant encounters where he assures a procession of would-be murderers he's a hardened criminal in the liquidation business. When a beautiful Latina asks him to terminate her abusive husband, Gary baffles his handlers by refusing her down-payment, and suggesting she initiates divorce proceedings instead of contracting a homicide. By this point, the narrative has departed from anything close to gritty realism - and clownish complications ensue when Gary secretly starts an affair with this 'femme fatale' while maintaining his assassin persona.

'Hit Man' could have followed in the footsteps of modern classics like 'Body Heat', but Linklater chooses to play it for comedy rather than drama. Tension is lost as the story becomes increasingly frivolous, until it arrives at a conclusion that belongs in a farce. The acting performances and lightly amusing screenplay just about hold one's interest, but the final product feels like an insubstantial appetizer that could have been a memorable main course with a different approach.

Glen Powell was blah in his last "big" movie, "Anyone But You". Here, things don't improve, although this time his female costar is just as extravangantly luscious as Sydney Sweeney, only brunette. His character, Gary Johnson dresses up in wigs and hats and costumes and assumes accents and personas to convince qould-be criminals that's he's a real hit man, but only they believe him - the audience certainly doesn't. One critic, Jason Fraley, describes the rom-com arc of the plot as "Fifty Shades Of Gary". The film is emotionless and gutless and packs zero punches. I kept waiting to laugh or be intrigued or moved or something... but nope, nothing/

It is a good movie for a lazy Saturday evening, entertaining enough to keep your attention throughout and go to bed with a half-smiled satisfaction. Nothing less, nothing more. A lukewarm experience.

It's even, consistent, but never warms up to 30 C degrees or over. I guess that was intentional given the real life implications of the story. It might have been more exciting at times, even frantic in certain scenes, but it wasn't. What a pity.

From a movie making point of view, it is almost impeccable. Good direction, simple but effective camerawork, good score and editing, and most of all, superb acting makes it a good and quite joyful watch.

If you look for a light entertainment, there you go. You can leave your brains at home. No worries.

If you enjoy quirky movies, director Richard Linklater is your guy. His latest is HIT MAN, which is a romantic comedy that's very loosely based on an article about a real guy, Gary Johnson. Gary (Glen Powell) is a college professor and part-time staffer at the New Orleans Police Department. He stumbles into a new role as an undercover hitman, arresting people who try hiring him to kill someone. It turns out he's very good at it. Powell really showcases his talents here, playing different characters for each arrest. When he meets Madison (Adria Arjona) though, he breaks protocol. I guess Powell has great chemistry with whoever he works with. He has an undeniable charm that seems like it spreads to the whole cast. I could tell they had fun filming this. It also has a very smart script, playing with ideas of identity and being your true self. The strong sense of humour actually changes as the movie progresses, which was fun for me, but might not work for some. I find it hilarious that they must've asked the real Gary Johnson for permission to go as far as they do here. The movie makes it clear what actually happened during the end credits. HIT MAN is quirky, unconventional, and very enjoyable. If you can't see it in theaters, don't worry! It'll be on Netflix June 7th. Make sure the algorithm doesn't bury it. Enjoy!

First thing's first: Glen Powell is incredible in this movie. He transforms across the spectrum of characters incredibly well. He's dynamic and believable in this role that boarders on absurdity and keeps it in bounds.

The premise of the story was entertaining and engaging, with an enjoyable secondary cast.

Adria Arjona was also fun, but her character could've better developed. The high octane romance tag transpires feels entirely too surface for how emotionally involved it becomes in the end. There were no flashes of actual connection beyond sexual intensity and discussion about murder. It would've been nice to see them have at least one "get to know you" interaction outside of the sex-murder dichotomy.

The ending is also.... Unnecessary. Maybe for laughs amongst the people who knew the real Gary Johnson, but for storytelling purposes it was a little too campy.

An entertaining watch, one of Netflix's better recent films. But it does fall a little flat in a couple places.