Hit Man

If I had to a film that I'd award the "Best Trailers of 2024" to thus far, it would undoubtedly be the incredibly energetic, perfectly-paired-with-music, yet still mysterious trailers for Hit Man (singing "Apple, peaches, pumpkin piiiiieeee..."). Normally when trailers are before every film I'm seeing, they drive me nuts. Because...well...most trailers aren't that great. 

But damn, I've been living off these Hit Man trailers because they're so fun and lively. Could the film match that energy? 

As these are Rapid Reviews, the quick answer is no, but hell, that may not have been possible, if we're being honest. Either way, Hit Man - for the trailers and actors - has been high on my must-see list for several months now. It's directed by Richard Linklater, a director whose work I'm mostly unfamiliar with, and features the uber-hot-right-now Glen Powell and Adria Arjona. 

There's a lot of compelling reasons to catch Hit Man on Netflix, so do they all add up? 

The answer is [mostly] yes. While it never can quite match the energy and feel of its A+ trailers, what's here is still a damn fun time, and a sexy romcom thriller. Powell plays the semi-dorky Gary Johnson, a college professor who gets thrust into being a faux hitman posing to capture potential clients. Powell, also responsible for co-writing the screenplay with Linklater, is fantastic here, and clearly having a blast. I mean...if I were romancing Adria Arjona I probably would be too...but he's having the most fun portraying various hitmen. These are almost all hilarious variations and part of the fun in the early moments of the film are seeing all these different sides of Gary. Eventually, he meets Madison as the uber-cool (aka Glen Powell as normal), Rob. Rob/Gary falls for Madison and she for him, complicating what was once a scenario that he was supposed to send her to jail. 

This is a funny, sexy film and Powell and Arjona have sizzling chemistry. The humor eventually subsides as the stakes get a bit higher, but they're never so dramatic that it transitions into full "thriller" territory. If anything, the film is a little too long at nearly 2 hours, and meanders a bit between the central romance and bridging the gap to the ending. I wouldn't say there's anything so remarkable that it enters "best of the year" discussions, but the entire thing is engaging, entertaining, and well crafted. 

Hit Man may not have lived up to my expectations (which were arguably just the high from the trailers), but hey...it's still fantastic. It's got attractive co-stars who turn it on, a playful sense of humor with some truly funny variations of Gary, and a fun plot that never makes the mistake of taking itself too seriously outside of some deeper dialogue around "self". Add in that it's on Netflix, and it's an easy argument to make a date night out of it. 

Rath's Review Score | 8/10

Posting these great trailers below: