Smart, sexy, and darkly comedic; this film deserves your attention
Glen Powell, huh? I’ll admit, the guy wasn’t on my radar until very recently, but after Top Gun: Maverick, Anyone But You, and now, Hit Man (not to mention the upcoming Twisters, which looks great), he’s on a killer run. I’m intrigued to dive into his filmography though, because with Hit Man, I’ve come to realise that Powell isn’t just hot and talented, but hot, talented, and weird. Is there a greater combination of traits?
Sidebar: Twitter isn’t good for much these days. As many of the talented creatives I follow divest themselves from the platform and the top replies to every tweet become increasingly vitriolic, I find myself spending less and less time there, despite the friends I’ve made there in the past. There is one aspect of the platform that survives, though, and that is Film Twitter.
I don’t invest much time in film news, so it is thanks to Film Twitter that I found out about Hit Man at all. The latest film from the legendary Richard Linklater (most notable for directing School of Rock, I think we can all agree) wasn’t being given a wide theatrical release, and instead was being plonked straight on Netflix. How exciting.
I’m not a die-hard Linklater fan—I just haven’t seen enough of his movies—so I’m a little embarrassed to say that if it weren’t for discovering that Glen Powell was starring in this movie, it might very well have escaped my notice entirely.
Recipe for a Hit
When Gary (Powell), a mild-mannered professor who contracts for the New Orleans Police Department on the side, is roped into posing as a hit man during a sting operation, he discovers a passion for the job. Taking over for a suspended officer, Gary soon starts tailoring his ‘hit man’ personas to best entice murder-for-hire solicitations from each individual ‘client’ until one day he meets Madison (Adria Arjona), a woman in dire straits whom he takes a liking to.
The driving appeal of Hit Man is, of course, Powell’s range as an actor, but credit must first be given to the film’s screenplay, which Powell co-wrote with Linklater. Apart from finding natural ways to showcase Powell’s talent, the screenplay is hilarious, and perfectly paced, rising to a controlled fever pitch that never jumps the shark or feels out of control.
In fact, it is that total sense of control that makes Hit Man so successful. Linklater is, of course, something of a dab hand when it comes to this directing stuff, but the intentionality behind every scene is magnetic. Linklater takes his time in his scenes, drawing out the tension and letting the actors do their thing. We can call this a ‘Netflix’ film all we want, but all they did was buy the distribution rights—nothing they produce themselves could contain this level of voice and style.
To touch on the Netflix thing one last time, I do think it’s a shame that Hit Man ended up there. The movie clearly had the potential to become a significant force in the zeitgeist if it had been given the opportunity—I mean, look what happened with Anyone But You—but instead it’s been condemned to Netflix purgatory from the get-go. Powell at least has a decent amount of star-power behind him, but I feel like this could’ve been major for Adria Arjona otherwise.
A Hit Man’s Guide to Philosophy
Powell and Arjona are forces of nature in this movie. Powell as Gary gets more stand-out moments, flexing accents, body language, and all sorts of mannerisms during his scenes as a ‘hit man’, but Arjona as Madison is incredible, too. She somehow makes being attracted to a hit man not feel like an insanely bad decision. She really sells her character.
The couple have incredible on-screen chemistry. Adding to the excitement of it is, of course, the fact that Gary is courting Madison as one of his more dashing hit man alter egos, Ron. The fragility of the situation creates a wonderful sense of tension throughout the whole movie.
Powell is also clearly having great fun with his hit man personas. He cycles through a good amount of them, and they're all completely transformative. They're mostly played for laughs, which I really appreciate. There's nothing funnier than committing to the bit, and I thank Powell for going to such lengths to make himself look like a psychopathic Tilda Swinton for a one-scene gag, among many others.
Perhaps a more divisive element to the film might be the scenes where Gary is teaching. He’s a psychology and philosophy professor, which gives the character a reason to speak lengthily on the topics of identity, the malleability of the self, and what it takes to live a good life.
It could be a criticism of the film that it doesn’t find a way to convey discussions of these themes in a more engaging way, but I liked their inclusion. Powell is just a fun guy to watch, even when he’s literally lecturing at you, and it’s rewarding to read between the lines of what he’s teaching to catch him justifying his more devious actions throughout the film.
Conclusion
There’s very little I don’t like about Hit Man. It’s one of those films that feels simple in concept and looks so good in execution that you would be forgiven for not thinking much of it at a glance, but there’s such craft in the directing, performances, and writing, that the film has found a place on my best films of 2024 (so far) list.
Every aspect of Hit Man feels magnetic. It won’t change your life—its insights into human behaviour are more tongue-in-cheek than insightful self-reflections—but if you’re anything like me, you’ll spend most of the movie smiling ear-to-ear. This might just be the best thing Twitter has done for me in years.
***
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