'Hit Man' is a quirky romantic thriller that hits the mark
Glen Powell nerds up in Richard Linklater's breezy genre-hopper
In “Hit Man,” Gary (Glen Powell) dresses up in a variety of disguises to play assassins, including a Russian hitman, an effete Hannibal Lecter-style serial killer, and a gun-toting good ‘ol boy.
But none of these alternate identities is more outlandish than Gary himself.
Powell is a rising star in Hollywood, known for playing swaggering, confident dudes in movies like “Top Gun: Maverick” and the upcoming “Twisters.” To see him play Gary, a nebbishy philosophy professor with thick glasses and a bad haircut, whose deepest relationship is with his cat, is one of the many delights of “Hit Man.”
Another is that the movie was co-written (with Powell) and directed by Richard Linklater, who knows how to find a good vibe in a movie and hang there. Even as it navigates genre turns between wry farce, sexy romantic comedy and noir thriller, “Hit Man” has an easygoing charm to burn both in front of and behind the camera.
Gary is a divorced man with seemingly no friends who clearly does not partake of the earthly pleasures of his native New Orleans. His one jolt of adventure comes from a side hustle building wiretap devices for local police (Retta, Rao) to entrap unsuspecting people who think they’re hiring a hitman, but in fact are talking to a sleazy undercover cop, Jasper (Austin Amelio).
When Jasper gets suspended for somehow being sleazier than most actual hitmen, Gary is brought in to pinch-hit to play the assassin-for-hire. To everybody’s surprise, Gary’s most of all, Gary turns out to be pretty good at impersonating a tough-guy killer. He starts getting more assignments, and there’s a fun montage of all the different targets, and all of Gary’s different guises, which all end with the target’s mugshot.
Then Gary, playing a very alpha-male, Glen Powell-like contract killer named Ron, meets Maddy (Adria Anjona). She’s a frightened wife seeking to off her controlling husband Ray (Evan Holtzman). Gary is instantly sympathetic to Maddy, and, mindful that the cops are listening in, steers her away from hiring him. It doesn’t hurt that Maddy and Ron (and Anjona and Powell) have instant and undeniable chemistry together, in a way Gary hasn’t felt in a long time, if ever.
(Photos courtesy of Netflix)
As Ron, Gary starts dating Maddy, who decides to deal with Ray the old-fashioned, non-lethal way and simply files for divorce. She’s free from a terrible marriage, Gary is free from the insecurities of being himself, and the liberated pair fall into bed again and again. I haven’t seen sex scenes this playful and smart since a ‘70s Warren Beatty movie.
Just when we’ve settled into “Hit Man” as a sexy romantic comedy, Linklater and Powell’s screenplay takes another genre turn in the third act into “Double Indemnity”-style noir thriller. And while another film might feel like it was whipsawing all over the screen, Linklater has a light, confident touch with the mishmash of genres.
Over his long career, Linklater has proven time and time again that he can make movies with interesting, likable characters we want to hang out with. He knows that if we like these characters, we’ll follow them anywhere and won’t really care what category the movie belongs in.
As Gary says at a couple of points in “Hit Man,” “all pie is good pie.” Whatever the flavor is, “Hit Man” serves up good pie.
“Hit Man” is playing in select theaters now, and will premiere Friday on Netflix.
Can't wait to see this!!
I’ve always enjoyed Linklater’s films, and this sounds great too. Did you see the documentary he did over years, filming a boy growing up? I think it was him, but I’m suddenly doubting myself. I loved that, too. Thanks for this! Is it in cinemas?