I went into The Hitman’s Bodyguard and was at least hoping that it would be a guilty pleasure… With Samuel L. Jackson and Ryan Reynolds, it would have to be decently enjoyable, right? RIGHT?! Wrong. It is pretty bad overall. There are some pretty big laughs, but that is about it. I really wanted to like this one.
The world’s top bodyguard gets a new client, a hit man who must testify at the International Court of Justice. They must put their differences aside and work together to make it to the trial on time.
Let’s start off with what was actually enjoyable about The Hitman’s Bodyguard. The lead actors are the only reasons to sit through the far too long two-hour run time. Sam Jackson plays Kingcaid, who is virtually an unkillable assassin that is extremely over the top and hilarious, Ryan Reynolds plays Michael Bryce, a former elite bodyguard who is trying to get back to the top. Jackson and Reynolds have some really funny scenes. I think the funniest scene in the entire movie comes in a flashback of how Kingcaid met his wife. I don’t want to spoil anything, but I was laughing so hard it hurt.
Other than the comedy, there isn’t much to like about The Hitman’s Bodyguard. It basically suffers from an identity crisis. Based on the trailers, I thought it would be really funny with some cheesy and over the top action scenes. The problem is that it takes itself way too serious at times that it shouldn’t. It also attempted to have a heart, when in reality no one really cares about Michael and Kingcaid’s love life. But the writer for some reason thinks that we wanted to hear about how Michael lost his girlfriend Amelia. It was very frustrating.
Another thing about The Hitman’s Bodyguard that made it very hard to watch was the cinematography. Really, the entire camera department had some issues. There were more than a few shots that were out of focus, smudged lenses, and weird camera movements that felt lazy and unnatural. I just kind of got the vibe that no one in the camera department really cared about the movie.
The way the action scenes were shot lazy and basic, not offering anything that you haven’t seen before in action movies. That is the best way to describe The Hitman’s Bodyguard; It is lazy. The CGI was also very cheesy looking. There were a handful of scenes that looked like they didn’t completely render in post production. Once again, it felt very lazy. Did anyone even care about this movie? It really doesn’t seem like it.
All in all, The Hitman’s Bodyguard is pretty forgettable and sluggish. Other than a few laughs, there is no reason to spend your money on it. The only time I would say it would be acceptable to watch this one is if it’s on TV and you’re kind of drunk.
Rating: [star rating=”1.5″]