Things I’ve Watched Thursday | Hit Man (2023)

In the interest of trying to be more consistent with my writing, I’ve decided to resurrect this series of posts — which, granted, only had one previous entry — because I’m a cinephile who loves to gab about and dissect movies I’ve seen with others. The subject for today’s review is *Hit Man*, a 2023 black comedy-romance film by Richard Linklater, starring Glen Powell.

Credit: Wikipedia

While I haven’t seen all of Linklater’s filmography, I have enjoyed some of his work: I remember liking *School of Rock when I saw it at the cinema years ago, and I’m a fan of his [Before trilogy](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Before_trilogy) ([Before Sunrise](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0112471/)* being my favorite). As I was perusing the family Netflix account, I noticed this flick being suggested to me a lot, and, along with Linklater’s track record, the premise alone was enough to rope me in, so I watched it.

The movie follows Gary (Glen Powell), who’s a meek, milquetoast philosophy professor who moonlights as a contractor who helps the New Orleans Police Department conduct sting operations. When Jasper, the cop who normally works as a fake hitman to foil murder-for-hire schemes, is suspended, Gary is asked on the fly to fill in for him — and, surprisingly, he’s phenomenal in the role.

So successful is Gary that he takes Jasper’s place as NOPD’s leading sting stool pigeon, and along the way, he meets Madison (Adria Arjona), an abused woman who seeks his “services” and winds up stealing his heart.

SPOILERS AHEAD

What I Liked

Glen Powell’s Performance: Although Mr. Powell has found himself within the cogs of the Hollywood Hype Machine for the past several years, I’ve never really found him that captivating. Honestly, he’s still like a poor man’s Chris Evans to me, in both looks and star power.

Having said that, I was pleasantly surprised by his turn here: He was masterfully chameleonic, adopting different accents, outfits, and body languages to portray a plethora of fake hitmen. The montage of the murderous peeps he managed to solicit and nab in sting operations was quite enjoyable to watch.

The biggest transformation, though, was his guise as “Ron”, the confident, charismatic killer who Madison falls for. Sure, he just has his hair jelled back and he wears more flattering clothes, but he’s undeniably sexier than Gary in real life.

The romantic chemistry: Powell and Arjona’s physical chemistry is palpable, which is good in the sense that there are quite a few sex scenes (hide your kids, hide your wife). Granted, I’m not an expert, but seeing them converse and conduct themselves on dates definitely seemed like how most real-life couples’ relationships would develop and deepen. Minus the fake hitman thing.

Kitties: Initially, Gary has two cats named Id and Ego. They don’t have much screentime, but it makes me happy to see cat dads on the big screen.

What I Didn’t Like

Madison: Don’t get me wrong: As someone who’s known victims of DV and women who have been in abusive marriages, I can sympathize with Madison. Where I draw the line is her deciding to ignore “Ron’s” advice and eliminate said ex, Ray (Evan Holtzman). I don’t have an issue with killing in self-defense, but at that point, he was incapacitated by a drug bender and not a viable threat.

The Ending: In addition to Ray’s murder, Madison winds up killing Jasper at the end — and Gary collaborates. Sure, he was blackmailing both of them for the former’s life insurance policy in exchange for keeping quiet on Gary’s canoodling with a suspect. And yes, he was an obnoxious, possibly racist a-hole. But them solidifying their covenant with each other through the shedding of innocent (of murder, at least) blood was not it. At all. I stan folks who take accountability for their actions and face the natural consequences thereof — which didn’t happen here, as evidenced by the flash forward to their happily married life with two dogs and two children.

Gary’s Evolution: Related to the above, we see Gary go through an evolution in the movie as he becomes more confident and emboldened through his romance with Madison, which also coincides with his morality becoming all the more fluid, as revealed in his classroom lectures. It all culminates with him giving his students a “morality is relative” spiel before they take their final exam, which, being a Christian who believes in absolute moral objectivism, I did not vibe with.

My Rating: 6/10 — Glen Powell gives a great performance, and the acting overall is very well done, but the exposition of morality and the character evolution leave much to be desired.

Favorite Quotes:

Gary: “All pie is good pie.”

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