Review by Dana Jung
Back in 2007 (a long time ago in movie dog years), HITMAN was a modestly successful adaptation of yet another video game. Starring Timothy Olyphant (later headlining the acclaimed TV series JUSTIFIED) as the mysterious Agent 47 and future Bond girl Olga Kurylenko, the original HITMAN was an exciting if mindless little action movie that for the most part stayed true to the spirit of the game. Now we have the sequel/reboot HITMAN: AGENT 47 with another look at the assassination game.
Rupert Friend (YOUNG VICTORIA, TVs HOMELAND) takes on the role of Agent 47, an emotionless killing machine that we learn in the pre-credits sequence has been bio-engineered to be the perfect soldier as part of the Agent Program. At some point, certain factions in the Agent Program broke away from the pre-destined life that the corporations and governments had in store for them. Now Agent 47 is fighting a different battle—one to hopefully keep the Agent Program technology forever secret, so that no other agency can use it to build super armies to wage global war.
Along with these higher stakes at play, the story also follows the investigations of Katia (Hanna Ware) to find a mystery man who may or may not have answers about her past. Soon an attempt is made to kidnap Katia, and a stranger named John Smith (Zachary Quinto of TVs HEROES, STAR TREK) shows up to protect her. It’s no secret that the two plotlines of Agent 47 and Katia will intersect, but they do so in a somewhat surprising way.
Friend essays the role with even more aloof coolness that Olyphant did in the original. The filmmakers have also wisely focused, as in the first film, on Agent 47’s relationship with a woman who mistrusts and even despises him. Friend’s chemistry with Ware is quite good and much of the movie’s sense of humor is the result of their interplay and verbal exchanges. Quinto is good, as always, and the fight scenes with Agent 47 are excellent. Ciaran Hinds is also very good in a brief but pivotal role, and Jurgen Prochnow (has it really been 35 years since DAS BOOT?) shows up in what amounts to a cameo. The action sequences are well-done (especially a helicopter scene) and at times take on the visual aspects of actually playing a video game. It’s also refreshing to see themes that include female empowerment and intellectual prowess in what is, in effect, a male-dominated genre based on a male-centric video game.
But if you’re looking for a thoughtful or profound examination of these themes, you best look elsewhere. However, if you want to check your brain at the door for a few hours (just like a video game!) and enjoy some full-tilt fights, gun battles, and action scenes in an engaging summer popcorn flick, you could do worse than HITMAN: AGENT 47.
3 of 5 Stars
