User Reviews

In a world of Hollywood formulas and studio safe bets, there's something refreshing about Hit Man and it's quirky out of the box story.

It follows Glen Powell as the eponymous Hit Man who gets into a complicated relationship with one of his clients. I won't go into any more detail as there's lots of fun layers to unravel with this film which are best discovered in the moment, but as mentioned it feels quite fresh and unique. It has really solid comedy, drama and romance, and will keep you on your toes throughout.

Rising to occasion of the great story is Glen Powell who shines once again in a leading role. His charisma always shines through and there's an instant connection to him and his character that never wanes. Matching him perfectly is Adria Arjona, the chemistry between them absolutely electric.

My only real complaints with this film are that it took too long to get going and was over far too quickly. Aside from these pacing issues there really isn't much to complain about with this film.

So if you are in the mood for a funny, sexy and dramatic film that will draw you in to it's weird and mysterious story then look no further than Hit Man.

This was billed as a quirky, clever Rom-Com by both its trailers and critics. The trailers looked fantastic, like a spirited passion project between Linklater and Powell that would parody the whole Rom-Com genre in witty fashion. The reality is this is just another Rom-Com film with critics falling head-over-heels with Linklater (as they always do). The most interesting part of the film is actually the first act, when Glen Powell gets to shine in a diverse portfolio of characters, including a long, gritty dialogue exchange. By the time the love interest appears in the second act, the film has already fallen into just another collage of good cop/good person/bad circumstance entanglement. Unfortunately the film never really redeems itself, nor its characters in unforgiveable acts. Its story feels mundane and outcome certain. While I had hoped for more, it was at least an easy viewing.

Hitman is definitely a film-lover's paradise but even the casual film viewer will thoroughly enjoy this brilliant new movie. Linklater's latest lovingly pays homage to film noir, screwball comedy, Hitchcockian black comedy and even the good old psychosexual drama but it still somehow manages to conjure up a fresh, witty and often uproarious confection that frequently teases, delights and occasionally thrills the audience with frissons of excitement, keeping them enraptured all the way to its deliciously razor sharp ending.

This is potentially a star-making turn for Glen Powell. Although he made a strong impression in Top Gun: Maverick as a cocky rival pilot, his role in Hit Man is easily more complex and, as the co-writer of the script, he has been able to add brilliant layers to his character, or should that be characters? In effect, Powell is playing more than one character - Gary Johnson, mild-mannered, cat-loving geeky Psychology professor and audio techie who moonlights as a surveillance expert for a Louisana-based police unit that targets and stings hapless ne'er-do-wells who are looking to hire a killer. Before the next sting operation, Gary's police colleague Jasper (Austin Amelio) who normally pretends to be the hired killer is suspended for brutally attacking two youths, which forces Gary's colleagues (brilliantly played by Retta and Sanjay Rao) into convincing Gary to take over from the universally loathed Jasper, much to Gary's dismay. Yet, within minutes of taking on the task, Gary suddenly morphs into "Ron" and during his first sting he is so convincing that his colleagues are shocked, even though they had believed he could do it having heard Jasper go through the rigamarole on previous occasions. It is a brilliant piece of acting.

Having created the killer persona, Gary soon finds himself becoming more and more immersed in Ron, adding further, chameleon-like layers of disguise and character traits to mirror whoever is about to be stung. However, things become really complicated (in true film noir style) when "Ron" is approached by a femme fatale, Maddy (beautifully played by Adria Ajrona who also adds a delightfully a kooky sexy edge as well as a tender vulnerability). As the sparks between the two begin to fly during a hilarious but flirty exchange, Gary, who is clearly enjoying himself as Ron, finds himself conflicted. Dare he. As Ron, continue with the sting and have Maddy arrested for plotting to murder her husband? Has the flirtatious exchange caused Maddy to betray some regrets about what she is doing? The chemistry between Powell and Arjona is a pleasure to witness. Both actors bring out the best in one another and it is thrilling.

Off-beat is an expression that would certainly apply to Hit Man - and it is a compliment. It is also one of the most enjoyable and fun 2 hours I've had in the cinema in the past few years. I absolutely adore this film.

I went to see this movie on a whim, mainly because I wanted to go to the cinema and had already seen everything else that was playing. With low expectations set by the unremarkable trailer and poster, the film pleasantly surprised me. Glen's performance was commendable; he effortlessly slipped into various character roles, eliciting genuine laughs along the way. The chemistry between Glen and Adria is fantastic. Although it includes some clichéd romcom moments that were a bit predictable, the infusion of philosophical insights provided an unexpected layer of intellect, elevating the overall experience.

That is rare. Well, I often laugh at the movie, but this time I definitely laughed with the movie, which happens only once every blue moon.

For context, I'm not the biggest fan of Richard Linklater. I generally find his movies to be okay at best, but this one I did really like. We have a nerdy main character I can definitely relate to as a fellow nerd and a fellow educator.

I did not really know who Glen Powell was before this. I had seen some movies he has a role in, but as he has been more of a character actor, I wasn't really aware of him. Here, he can kind of use that. He is supposed to be forgettable and learn to be something else.

Powell also co-wrote the movie, his first feature as the writer. The story is nothing special. It's kind of obvious after the premises, but it does work nicely as something to hang all these jokes on.

It doesn't really fall into copaganda either, which is a rarity.

My first experience with Glenn Powell was his supporting role in Top Gun: Maverick. He's been around much longer but he was good at playing the brash and cocky Hangman. He's been noteworthy in previous efforts (Hidden Figures was also mentioned by one of my friends) but I was blown away by his work in Hit Man, not only is he fantastic as the suave and smooth Ron but he's also convincing as the reserved and stale Gary (I do have some thoughts on how they present Gary, more on that later). But watching him in Hit Man, it felt like I was watching someone doing acting gymnastics, he's playing so many different and bizarre characters and he nailed every single one. He also has great chemistry with his co-star Adria Arjona, I was just as interested in the their torrid romance than I was in what costume Gary was going to shuffle into next. Speaking of Adria, her work in this was also noteworthy, it would have been easy to make assumptions about Madison's character if Adria's performance didn't make her so mysterious and alluring. She's beautiful, she got her fair share of laughs from me and I was surprised at how invested I was in Gary and Madison's relationship by the end of the movie. I also wanted to credit Austin Amelio, Retta and Sanjay Rao for their collective work in their supporting parts. Another expectation the movie subverts is painting Jasper as a two dimensional villain, Austin makes Jasper unlikeable but not inhuman or not believable as Gary's dejected co-worker.

Besides the performances, my favourite part of Hit Man was how it subverts the formula. I can't call it wholly and completely original but I was constantly trying to guess the next twist or shift in the narrative based on similar films. Hit Man continued to zag when I expected it to zig and it's so well layered. Director Richard Linklater and his team have a sense of when they need to switch things up, just when the movie gets too goofy, we get more time with Ron & Madison bonding or when you're about to guess when a twist will happen, the movie will suddenly get much darker. There's several tones at play but they are mixed together so precisely that it kept me entertained when I feel like another movie would have lost me.

So many movies are "based" on a true story and sure enough, Hit Man isn't the unvarnished truth up on the screen. But the movie is cognizant of the fatigue that comes with this claim and admits it upfront. It helps that the true story is so fantastical that I wasn't bothered in how they tweaked it. Despite the changes, Hit Man is so good natured and seems to being celebrating Gary's unbelievable skill set that I didn't get bogged down in what was true and what wasn't.

Hit Man slowly builds toward the finale and despite climax being morally murkier and darker tinged than I maybe expected, I loved how the ending punctuated what was a hugely enjoyable film. I was rooting for Gary/Ron and Madison despite what was revealed about them and it's captured wonderfully by Linklater. The movie doesn't pause to scold you for being sympathetic to one party or another and I liked that it wasn't too concerned with the absolute morality of the characters. The film ends with a metaphorical wink to the audience and it felt like a chef's kiss on a delicious meal.

I'm going to be brief about any griping, My only problem is that they don't do a wholly convincing job of dressing Glen Powell down to be the nerdy and shy Gary Johnson when he's just being himself. It's reminiscent of sitcoms slapping glasses on models to trying to present them as dowdy. When everyone is making jokes about how "normal" and "unassuming" Gary looks, I rolled my eyes a little. But I guess Glen Powell being too handsome to be terribly convincing as a geek college professor is a nice problem to have.

Hit Man was such a pleasant surprise, I felt like I was taking a gamble taking friends to see it in the theatre with me but we all walked out impressed. It made me a little sad that it was simultaneously released on Netflix, this is a theatre quality movie and while I understand it might have had a tougher road to profitability than your typical summer tentpole, it earned my ticket price. The film is so much fun, Glen Powell and Adria Arjona light up the screen and the fact that it's based on a true story is just delightful (I loved the end credits joke on how they changed the story). I tip my hat to Powell, Linklater & his team and the real Gary Johnson, I had a great time with Hit Man. I'd rate this at an 8.5/10 rounding up to a 9/10 and while you should check it out on Netflix, you won't regret going to see it in theatres either.

Well we had some tough comedy movies in the past but this is one is good. It made me think about 'the millers', it has a little bid the same comedy vibe. Just good jokes and even better acting. It just all fits. Not only the lead but also the crew around it.

Besides comedy the movie is also a little bit mysterious. You keep wondering what got the lady to do with it and can she be trusted?

Plot was decent too! Not some unrealistic without idea just to end the movie script.. no it actually fits with the whole movie and is original.

Maybe there was more possible with the teaching scenes on school.. that was sometimes a little bit duff but argh.. i didnt mind it that much.

So yeah.. had some good laughs.. i go wild and give it a 8.

Glen Powell embodied every character he played making it exciting to see who he would play next. It was easy to believe he was each person he played because he did such a great job with each one.

Adria Arjona also delivers a very convincing performance. Her character although not changing physically like Glen Powell, does demonstrate a multi-dimensional persona. The relationship that develops between these two characters is both romantic and thrilling. The rest of the cast is also good without a single flawed performance.

There are some interesting psychological ideas explored in this movie. Not only were the ideas interesting but so was the manner in which they were delivered. Glen Powell's character Gary essentially would speak to his students about certain psychological ideas while simultaneously exploring these ideas as a hitman.

Overall, this was a well written and interesting story. It's a good blend of comedy, romance and crime.

Hit Man delivers a funny and entertaining movie that is more than your average rom-com. The movie ultimately is great for anybody looking for a nice movie to watch. While I don't exactly find it really good and just find at a good rom-com flick, Hit Man offers a more respectable approach that is a nice change of pace of various "Based on a true story" movies. Instead of trying to make it seem like all the events in the movie happened in real life in a deceiving manner, Hit Man, based on a real person, openly states the inaccuracies in the movie that are much different from real life events. I find various movies these days don't offer this type of respect to real people or events and the idea of adding fantasy elements and blending them with reality results in some people believing it entirely. This results in a different view towards certain real people and events, which is all just very manipulative and upsetting. While this isn't really that big of an issue (except when it's done a problematic way, such as disrespecting loss of life, tragedy, etc.) but I really do appreciate Hit Man's honesty about it. I absolutely recommend Hit Man as a fun watch and I do love how respectful it is to the real people it's based around.

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!

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.

Well, I'm a little shocked.

They tagged this as "Action Comedy Crime", and I think only the Crime label fits it. It's not entirely "hilarious", and I was just thinking about how a movie can be this engrossing with no action at all.. But what it is, it's a tremendously well written and executed script. With plenty of memorable lines, unexpected "commitment", and even psychological (add that label) lessons. Glen Powell is simply amazing in it. He's demonstrated a lot of charm, but we now got to see quite a bit of range as well. Even his disguises. The rest of the case help sell it.

And the ending was quite satisfying, even if I didn't entirely expected it!

But the great pacing takes you along and you start to accept the path you are walking alongside these characters. Haven't watched a recent movie that makes me want to recommend this to everyone I know.. kind of has a Mr Brooks vibe to it.

Hit Man is a new action comedy directed, written and produced in part by Richard Linklater, director of Boyhood and Before Midnight.

Gary Johnson (Glen Powell) is a school teacher, but also secretly works for the police. At one point he has to play a fake hitman with the police. He is hired by clients to commit murders, but after clients confess their criminal plans to Gary, the police can arrest them.

When Madison Masters (Adria Arjona) wants to hire Gary, he falls for her beauty. This causes him to break his own rules and try to change Madison's mind so that she does not carry out criminal plans. The two fall in love, but Madison actually falls for the hitman Ron, who played Gary for her. On the other hand, Gary shouldn't show that he's broken his own code to Madison because it could get him in trouble with the police and ruin his career.

This film is based on a true story, where the real Gary Johnson posed himself to the police as a hitman who criminals could hire to commit murders. Only after sharing their murderous plans with Gary could the police catch them. The real Gary Johnson had to dress up so many times, wearing different styles of clothes and wigs to appear different to each criminal, so he couldn't be exposed as an undercover cop. Glen Powell also does the same at the beginning of the film. He wears different costumes and also acts in different ways. For example, the film starts off more like an action comedy, but when Gary falls for Madison, the film turns more into a romantic comedy.

Richard Linklater provides a comic action film, but with repeated events, where Gary, in different disguises, makes various criminals confess. When the film later turns more into a romantic comedy, this mainly works because of the good chemistry between Glen Powell and Adria Arjona, their characters. Glen Powell only plays a character who leads a double life and his character ends up in a relationship with the possible criminal. This creates complicated situations in which he has to continue working strategically, without Madison or the police realizing that he is actually lying to both of them. However, the film does have a somewhat abrupt ending, which does not seem to answer everything.

Glen Powell plays the lead role well and actually has to play the role in different ways. This gives him the opportunity to show different acting capabilities in this film. Adria Arjona also plays the role of a seductive, possible criminal well, because as a viewer, like the main characters, you do not always know whether she can be completely trusted. After his time in various Walking Dead series, Austin Amelio also gets the chance to act in a film. He plays a colleague of the main character, who may thwart his strategic plans if he is told too much.

The hitman is already for a long time a popular character in crime and (neo) noir films. For me the ultimate hitman-film is "The day of the jackal" (1973, Fred Zinnemann). In this film Edward Fox plays a hitman that is professional, emotionless and a typical loner.

Only the last description does apply to Gary Johnson (Glen Powell) in "The hit man". He is however not a real hit man but an undercover hit man. He meets people looking for a hit man and makes sure the compromising evidence is on tape.

In order to do this he changes outfit all the time and this leads to a comic costume parade, including an imitation of Anton Chigur (Javier Bardem), the hit man from "No country for old men" (2007, Ethan & Joel Coen).

Being partly a comedy, "Hit man" is an odd one in the oeuvre of director Richard Linklater, who is mostly known for his "Before .... " relation trilogy (1995, 2004,2013) and his coming of age film "Boyhood" (2014).

"Hit man" really takes of when Gary Johnson falls in love with one of his clients (Maddy Masters played by Adria Arjona). It is the starting point of a roller coaster of numerous unexpected twists and turns.

One of the themes is losing sight of the difference between your undercover "me" and your real "me". It happens in numerous film, but it also happens in reality. In an investigation from 1994 - 1996 the Dutch parliament studied how it happened by the police while combatting organized crime.

The fact is however that Gary Johnson has two real "me's", one as a part-time police officer and one as a professor in philosophy. The last one delivers the philosophical theme of the movie of how to find a satisfactory balance between ratio and discipline (represented by the Greek God Apollo) and feeling, emotions, instincts and living dangerously (represented by the Greek God Dionysus).

Remarkable is that where his most famous films (The "Before" trilogy and "Boyhood") are typical for an Apollonian world, "Hit man" descends to the depths of Dionysus.

By the way, "Hitman" is in my opinion not very flattering for women, showing how they prefer the sex appeal of a hit man to that of a "dull" police officer (let alone a nerdy professor).

If you are able to accept the basic premise that Glen Powell is an awkward college professor who moonlights with the police department as a fake hit man, you should be fine. I will admit that this is a fairly high bar for entry, but I assure you that the ride is pretty fun if you can clear it. The script is funny, the cast is solid, and the chemistry between Powell and Arjona Is palpable. The whole thing reminded me of the last Fletch with Jon Hamm: a charming and well executed mystery comedy for adults. I consider that a pretty high compliment. So while the concept is silly, the ride is enjoyable. Embrace the willing suspension of disbelief and have some fun.

Hit Man was such an interesting and welcomed departure from the projects usually led by director, Richard Linklater. It's the kind of story that, much like Edgar Wright's Baby Driver or Shaun of the Dead, would've made for a mediocre movie if directed by an amateur, but made for a great movie because it was directed by an experienced industry professional. All Linklater films are good films.

This film keeps you guessing from beginning to end and tells its story in a way that makes the audience feel like they are learning and growing along with the characters. A great example of this is when the film periodically cuts back to Glen Powell's character, Gary Johnson, lecturing students on the everyday behaviors of people. Gary casually and subtly uses his experience as an undercover investigator as the building blocks for these lessons. By doing this, Gary is also introducing and breaking down the overarching themes of the film. It truly is brilliant storytelling.

There will never be enough words to properly commend the actors in this film. They brought so much life and enthusiasm to their characters in constant battle between show stealers. In this battle, there were no winners or losers. The acting was balanced and cast members complimented their costars exquisitely.

Linklater and Powell's writing was entertaining, truly comedic, well paced, and extremely thoughtful. It is definitely a must see for film buffs searching for depth and those just looking for a fun surface-level comedy. It does both properly in all respects.

"The eternal mystery of human consciousness and behavior." Gary Johnson (Glen Powell)

Having just enjoyed a summer stroll through an arts festival, I settled for another breezy summer evening with Glen Powell as a nerdy and hot professor and hitman, thanks to the Netflix trick of playing its crime soft and its romance, well, plainly romantic.

Promising some truth in the telling, Hitman is based on a feature in Texas Monthly about Gary Johnson, a college philosophy teacher (see the above quote about his interest) who also moonlights with the local police as an ersatz hitman, nailing scores of bad apples looking to hire an assassin usually for reasons of love gone badly. Gary, wearing multiple disguises for his wildly different clients, can further enhance his lectures on the self: "What if your self is a construct?" he asks his students.

Gary remains an operative who never kills anyone until he meets comely client, Maddy (Adria Arjona), and is drawn into a caper as Ron and lover, possibly becoming at least an accomplice to murder. Meanwhile, director Richard Linklater, who knows a thing or two about actors as lovers, weaves the romance with college lectures on identity and psychological self-styling, common threads in our social-media landscape. Our ability to create our own persona on Facebook or Snapchat, for example, is not unlike his profession, but not quite as dangerous, mostly.

You don't need to know Nietzsche to believe that a mild-mannered professor could play a hit man (a student exclaims, "When did our teacher get hot?") or that anyone could construct a personality with the help of the Internet. The film becomes more than an amusing thriller as identities play a key role in furthering a promising romance or solving a crime that has murder as a centerpiece.

Although more than once it's claimed there are no hitmen now or in history, Hit Man goes a long way in convincing us that they could be real. In more than one extended dialogue, Gary/Ron explains the complexity and allure of switching identities.

Hit Man has its own double identity-cool summer caper and dangerous romance, both threatened by electronic surveillance and the human capability of shifting its persona throughout life. Although the subject of identity crafting involving the id, the ego, and the superego can't be adequately discussed in a brief TV melodrama, Hit Man does give one pause. And a brisk summer breeze.

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.

Rotten Tomatoes gives this movie an unbelievable 98%. The first hour is slow and repetitive and completely unbelievable despite its being based on a real person. But that real person was a real investigator not just a tech guy who filled in unexpectedly one day. The legal stuff is ridiculous. As if multiple murder convictions would take place in a matter of months. And police witnesses don't sit in court throughout a trial. There was little chemistry despite the best efforts of the female lead actress. It did finally get a little more interesting a hour in but any originality was squandered by the trite ending.

Genre: Affection and not Action.

This movie is a just a love story no more no less. For anyone who didnt yet watch this and is a sucker for love stories then, this is A movie But for those who get in expecting some action stuff and comedy like the genre says then, you will be dissappointed.

No Action No Comedy Only two thing are good about this movie; 1. The chemistry between Glen and Adria I personally think Glen and Adria should be lovers in real life 2. Cinematography, tempo, acting is solid and script done well So, can someone please the genre because it is joke to call this movie an 'action' genre movie.