Movie Review - The Hitman's Bodyguard

The Hitman’s Bodyguard **** (out of 5) (R) After many films, the first time I truly enjoyed a Ryan Reynolds performance was in last year’s hilarious spoof of all things Marvel and superheroesque, Deadpool. He delivered sarcastic throwaway lines with the deftness of Robert Downey, Jr., while handling all the heavy lifting for a perfect mix of action and laughs. If you similarly enjoyed the tone and pace of that one, this action comedy among mere, yet talented in their own lethal way, mortals will land right in your wheelhouse. In fact, it may be accessible to a wider range of viewers, since there aren’t a slew of jokes geared towards those who best know the comics and movies Deadpool was gigging.

Samuel L. Jackson co-stars as the eponymous contract killer Interpol is trying to move from England to the Hague to testify against the genocidal maniac who massacred many of his countrymen while running an Eastern Bloc country. Since Jackson is the only known, credible witness, legions of the despot’s minions, including a mole or two among the Good Guys, kn ow more than they should about Jackson’s location and routes. Highly-skilled thugs, armed to the teeth and deployed per the insider info make the trek to the trial seem impossible.

When one agent (Elodie Yung) realizes there’s a leak, she calls upon her ex-beau (Reynolds) who had run a first-rate protection service for major crime bosses until a high-profile hit two years earlier sent his career, their romance, and his entire life directly into the dumper. She needs someone outside the loop to carry Jackson past all the defenders to the goal line; he needs a chance for professional redemption. Other complications make the journey more arduous - and much funnier - but you’re better off learning them in the theater than before. A couple of scenes belong on Hollywood’s 2017 highlight reel, most notably when Jackson tells how he met the love of his life (Salma Hayek, in a role that she milks wonderfully despite minimal face time). Great fun. (8/18/17)