HIT MAN

It's always great when you walk into a film knowing next to nothing about it, save for the director and actors, and it takes you by complete surprise to become one of your favourites of the year. That's what happened with Richard Linklater's Hit Man, a film that kicked off London Film Festival this year for me in hilariously spectacular fashion.

Professional killer Gary Johnson (Glen Powell) breaks protocol to help Maddy Masters (Adria Arjona), a desperate woman trying to flee an abusive husband and finds himself falling for her.

Right from the off Hit Man subverted my expectations, Richard Linklater and Glen Powell's writing settling you in nicely with an incredibly funny sequence to set the tone and nature of Gary Johnson's character. It was the subtlety of it all that was so impressive, Powell's switch from nervous wreck to confident killer a stretch but a believable one thanks to their writing and Powell's performance. From that moment, the film doesn't hold back when it comes to the number of clients Gary Johnson meets and the amount of ridiculous disguises he wears to get into character. Seriously, just sit back and revel in Powell clearly doing the same in the role.

It's a real shame this won't be releasing in cinemas because it offers such a great time with a packed audience. Laughs aplenty as Linklater and Powell clearly had too much fun in the writing department, while providing such a unique backdrop for a romance to occur. Not since Grosse Point Blank has a hitman dealing with his romantic feelings been this entertaining.

The film would be nothing though without the sizzling chemistry shared between Glen Powell and Adria Arjona, both playing off the other to great effect to create such a playful nature to proceedings. Powell is an actor sure to be leading many a film from this moment after such a charismatic turn here as Gary Johnson, his comedic timing being utterly brilliant. Arjona matches Powell stride for stride when it comes to the comedy, a scene they share in the latter stages of the film being the delicious cherry on top. Support from Austin Amelio as a seedy undercover cop Jasper and Retta as a member of Gary's team, quick to fire off a one-liner, make Hit Man feel like a true ensemble having an absolute blast.

I urge you to check out Hit Man in a cinema, if Netflix give it a limited release that is, because Richard Linklater just proves he can effortlessly deliver such a dynamic and fun cinematic experience with this one.

Verdict: ★★★★½