Oddly enough, I was expecting this film to be longer, closer to two hours or more than two hours. But given how I've watched it before and my outlook towards movies, generally, in that runtime range, I should've known that assumption was incorrect; if it were closer to two hours or more, I would've easily remembered.
The weird thing is that I'm not sure if it was too short/should've been longer. The hour and a half flew by fairly quickly. And hardly anything seemed to have happened. But that's more on the writing rather than the runtime. I feel like the story was a bit lackluster. If the story were better/more engaging, the somewhat short runtime wouldn't have stood out.
On its own, this film was alright, decent. As an action film, I don't think it was a bad one. It held its weight. But, as I said, the story was a bit lackluster, and so was the overall film, to an extent. The "bigger issue" is that this film wasn't "on its own." It's an adaptation of a video game series. That fact changes everything.
And while I haven't played any of the games myself, and I haven't seen someone else play any of the older ones (which seem to be considered the best ones), it's easy for me to notice how off-base, as an adaptation, this film was.
That wasn't a big deal for me, although I think a less loosely based film adaptation of the video game series would be super good and enjoyable, more than this film was. For me, it pretty much boils down to the enjoyment factor. A good example would be how I know I enjoyed the later film adaptation in 2015, Hitman: Agent 47, more than this one. And I know that one's worse, adaptation-wise, but it's simple: I enjoyed it more. This time, it may end up different once I get around to rewatching it. Who knows.
The most noteworthy aspects of this film were the action sequences (even though the editing during the fight sequences could've been better), the acting performances by Timothy Olyphant, Robert Knepper, and Olga Kurylenko (specifically the latter. I thought she gave the best acting performance. Timothy's acting was decent, and parts of his performance, particularly his enunciation, seemed similar to Keanu Reeves, with a little bit of Robert Pattinson's Edward Cullen. Robert was underutilized, in my opinion: he still gave a good performance), the chemistry between Timothy and Olga, and the score. Geoff Zanelli's work with the score was the best aspect out of them all. It sounds like a mix of the score in the video game in the video game, Syphon Filter: Logan's Shadow, and the score in the show, Person of Interest.
And interestingly enough, there happened to be an alternate ending, which I came across, and I'm glad that it got scrapped. The film's actual ending, while a bit lackluster, was much better.
Ultimately, this was a film with some good aspects and decent overall, albeit lackluster in the adaptation department. But even on its own, I felt like it could've been way better; I wished it. The potential was there. Despite that, I still enjoyed it.
From what I've read, a sequel was going to happen, but Timothy Olyphant had no interest in returning, which is unfortunate, as I think a sequel would've been desirable; that's when the sequel turned into a reboot, resulting in Hitman: Agent 47.
Review by LineageBlockedParent2018-09-01T21:46:26Z— updated 2022-06-29T18:07:13Z
"How about dying with a little dignity?"
Oddly enough, I was expecting this film to be longer, closer to two hours or more than two hours. But given how I've watched it before and my outlook towards movies, generally, in that runtime range, I should've known that assumption was incorrect; if it were closer to two hours or more, I would've easily remembered.
The weird thing is that I'm not sure if it was too short/should've been longer. The hour and a half flew by fairly quickly. And hardly anything seemed to have happened. But that's more on the writing rather than the runtime. I feel like the story was a bit lackluster. If the story were better/more engaging, the somewhat short runtime wouldn't have stood out.
On its own, this film was alright, decent. As an action film, I don't think it was a bad one. It held its weight. But, as I said, the story was a bit lackluster, and so was the overall film, to an extent. The "bigger issue" is that this film wasn't "on its own." It's an adaptation of a video game series. That fact changes everything.
And while I haven't played any of the games myself, and I haven't seen someone else play any of the older ones (which seem to be considered the best ones), it's easy for me to notice how off-base, as an adaptation, this film was.
That wasn't a big deal for me, although I think a less loosely based film adaptation of the video game series would be super good and enjoyable, more than this film was. For me, it pretty much boils down to the enjoyment factor. A good example would be how I know I enjoyed the later film adaptation in 2015, Hitman: Agent 47, more than this one. And I know that one's worse, adaptation-wise, but it's simple: I enjoyed it more. This time, it may end up different once I get around to rewatching it. Who knows.
The most noteworthy aspects of this film were the action sequences (even though the editing during the fight sequences could've been better), the acting performances by Timothy Olyphant, Robert Knepper, and Olga Kurylenko (specifically the latter. I thought she gave the best acting performance. Timothy's acting was decent, and parts of his performance, particularly his enunciation, seemed similar to Keanu Reeves, with a little bit of Robert Pattinson's Edward Cullen. Robert was underutilized, in my opinion: he still gave a good performance), the chemistry between Timothy and Olga, and the score. Geoff Zanelli's work with the score was the best aspect out of them all. It sounds like a mix of the score in the video game in the video game, Syphon Filter: Logan's Shadow, and the score in the show, Person of Interest.
And interestingly enough, there happened to be an alternate ending, which I came across, and I'm glad that it got scrapped. The film's actual ending, while a bit lackluster, was much better.
Ultimately, this was a film with some good aspects and decent overall, albeit lackluster in the adaptation department. But even on its own, I felt like it could've been way better; I wished it. The potential was there. Despite that, I still enjoyed it.
From what I've read, a sequel was going to happen, but Timothy Olyphant had no interest in returning, which is unfortunate, as I think a sequel would've been desirable; that's when the sequel turned into a reboot, resulting in Hitman: Agent 47.