“Hitman: Agent 47” on target

“Hitman: Agent 47”

Running Time: 1 hour and 36 minutes

Rated R

Directed By: Aleksander Bach

Written By: Skip Woods & Michael Finch

Starring:

Rupert Friend as Agent 47

Hanna Ware as Katia van Dees

Zachary Quinto as John Smith

Angelababy as Diana

Thomas Kretschmann as Le Clerq

and Ciaran Hinds as Dr. Litvenko

Look, I know that this is going to sound strange because it is.

In the 1950’s, the government experimented with genetically altered children in hopes of creating the perfect assassin. Unfortunately, the leader of the experiments, Dr. Litvenko disappeared without a trace. Years later, the International Contract Agency and the Syndicate both locate their first solid lead in connection with Dr. Litvenko. The lead is Katia van Dees who has spent most of her life trying to find an unnamed man with only a few clues to go by. One day, after an evening at a library Katia is approached by a man named John Smith. Smith is an agent who works for The Syndicate and warns Katia that a genetically engineered super assassin named 47 is also following her. Katia quickly learns that the man that she is looking for is her father, that both men are also looking for him for different reasons, and much more about her past than she was prepared for.

He’s an engineered human being. Stronger, faster, and more intelligent than normal people.

Based on a video game with an elaborate back story, I think that this reboot played closer to the video game than its 2007 Hitman predecessor. As much as I loved Timothy Olyphant in the 2007 version, I thought that Rupert Friend was the perfect choice for this film. His intensely calm and cool demeanor, along with his body language clearly depicted my image of a genetically engineered super killing machine. Zachary Quinto seemed to warm up to his role mid-way through the film even though it’s still difficult for me to see him in a role other than Spock. The screenplay, written by Skip Woods (known for X-Men Origins: Wolverine) and Michael Finch (known for Predators), was tight with the sub-plots being shared aptly throughout the film. The action scenes strayed away from the usual which was quite entertaining. Don’t listen to the negative reviews, as a fan of intelligent action films, I recommend that you run into the theater to see this one! ~Movie Buffette