In The Line Of Fury.
118 Mins. Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Samuel L. Jackson, Salma Hayek, Elodie Yung, Richard E. Grant & Gary Oldman. Director: Patrick Hughes.
All together now! Sing it with me! "AND I-EEE-I WILL ALWAYS LOVE BUDDY COP MOOVIEEES EEE-IES"! 'Lethal Weapon', '48 Hours', 'Bad Boys', 'Rush Hour'. 'Cagney and mother####### Lacey'! But hey Avengers how about the merc with the mouth and the leader in a saucy little leather number with the eye patch? Because here comes a team up assemble Marvel can only wish for if Fox ever lets their superstar superhero out the box. No we're not talking about the Green Lantern, but Deadpool and Nick Fury, Agent Of S.H.I.E.L.D (the closest they've got prior to this being a helicarrier Easter Egg in the first Wade Wilson movie last year). Ryan Reynolds and Samuel L. Jackson. Now that sounds like a perfect partnership with the dude with all the jokes and the other guy that's in every movie if I do so say myself mother######s! O.K. that's the last time I'll curse...I swear. Because no one quite gives that word it's exclamation like Sam...although his on-screen wife gives him a run for his swear jar money here. Like a Will Smith "Hell Nah", Denzel Washington "my man", or Owen Wilson "WAAOOW"! This mans expletive catchphrase has been as P.G.-13 bleeped (or King Kong stamped out) to rated R (hello Mr. Tarantino) present as he has in seeemingly every other movie out right now and as a matter of fact all the time. And it's been like that for damn (see...we're still at it) near, amazingly a quarter of a century now. And he's still going strong...even though we're sure he's been in his sixties for the last twenty so years. But he's still acting in anything he can and that's beside the point that the Hollywood movieworld is made up of about 95% Marvel movies right now (hey...he wasn't in 'Spider-Man'). Although you can play the six degrees of separation, superhero connection game here too like you can with most blockbusters. As here we even have Deadpool dating Elecktra in the form of Netflix and Marvel's 'Daredevil' and 'Defenders' star Elodie Yung. Now what would Matt Murdock say if he could see as the 'Dark Knight's Commissioner Gordon looks on with one of 'Logan's last villains? All these comic-book characters yet still in 'The Hitman's Bodyguard' it's hard to find many heroes.
That's just the assassins creed I'm afraid. No one the wrong side of 47 is going to love a Hitman...and they especially won't like the hired gun paid to protect the man that's financed to funeral people either. But as Ryan Reynolds almost spoofs his 'Safe House' with Denzel Washington it does make for one hell of an original, outstandingly funny comedy concept for a Friday film. Some critics are already calling this one a mid in-flight movie, hold your attention between sleep entertainer akin to James Patterson's airplane shop bibliotheque of 'Alex Cross' books. But that patronising assumption in a world where our iPad's and fingertips have all the entertainment and choice we could wish for at the swipe of a finger diminishes the engrossing and enjoyable entertainment we get from both book and films novel idea. And oh how fun this one is from director Patrick Hughes who knew how to make Sly Stallone's 'Expendables' not that for a third more thrilling go round (here's a cheat sheet for you, add one Antonio Banderas. A psycho villain played by who else but Mel Gibson? And Wesley Snipes making so on the nose it's amazing you haven't sneezed yet jokes about jail for tax evasion). The humour's on point here too. Implied or explicit for this buddy cop comedy genre bender that shows strangely that even with the formula intact you don't have to make a buddy cop piece about police. But the action too is amazing on a perfectly chereographed like brutal ballet, 'Bad Boys' level for a film that on the surface looks like a 'Cop Out'. What ya gonna do? These days big budget comedies with an action twist in the chamber know how to bring out the big guns. See a similarly lock stocked and laugh loaded 'Spy' parody starring Melissa McCarthy and a respective Bond and self sending up Jude Law and Jason Statham. This isn't British Intelligence however this is more like the Kingsmen's American Statesmen cousins minus the stetson and skipping rope. Even if they start their Europe lampoon off in Manchester. As this film visits all the continents cosmopolitan locations. London, Amsterdamn...Coventry?! Even after Liverpool's '51st State' if someone told you you'd be seeing Samuel L. Jackson taking out a bunch of hijacking, machine gunning villains in a West Midlands town in an overturned aflame car between a WH Smith and a Cafe Nero...well you know how the response would go. Only in Hollywood...or should we say...Coventry?!
Tinseltown or tiny one in cinematic comparison it's clear to see no matter the on-set location the ageless, 'Pulp Fiction' hitman, hit making legend is having the 'Point Break' Swayze of his life like someone ordered him a Royale with cheese with a tasty beverage to wash it down with. This love song to the 90's 'Hitman Bodyguard' film with plenty of 'Grosse Point Blank', 'Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang' (all we need now is Tony Stark) for your popcorn buck takes Sam Jackson back to his 'Long Kiss Goodnight' days with this smoking barrel Au Revoir. And the scattergun action sees more weapon disarmament, hand-to-hand combat than a 'Bourne' again 'Mission Impossible' with enough gun fights and dog eat dog punch ups to keep the fuse lit to the explosive ending that sees more fireballs than a Beyonce emoji spammed picture on Instagram. And if more car chases than 'Bullitt', more bullets than 'John Wick' and more wick than dynamite wasn't enough bang for you, then blow for blow this movie and its shakers trade as much back handed banter as they do clenched fist battles. What more can you expect from the born to play Deadpool who gave the Merc his mouth and even before all those superhero origins was a Dane Cook a minute gag and sarcasm machine bro? He and Jackson know how to bring the action and the 'roll over, 'beep', 'beep' laughing too. In a world of "LOL's" it's refreshing to laugh all the way down to your gut. The same gut you might threw up at the site of the blood in this dark comically, ultraviolent action that may be a Summer sleeper this blockbuster season once it wakes everyone up like it's day in court. Reynolds and Jackson's dynamic duo partner up to make one hell of a team. But like all good award speeches they couldn't get by without a little help from their friends. And this film has everyone on board. Even a hilarious coked up cameo from well to do boy grown distinguished, Richard E. Grant of all people. A coming of career Elodie Young is electric here. Whilst legend and 'The Professional' and 'Air Force One' bad guy Gary Oldman is back on the form of his younger years. As a matter of fact everyone brings their A game here. Especially a foul mouthed, prison tatted Salma Hayek who almost steals the show with her stay behind bars incarcerated wife who treats cell mates like she was the 'Blair Witch'. Scary?! More like scary good. With 'The Hitmans Bodyguard' Hughes has just taken care of his own hit flick, making a killing with the eagerly exciting, action-com eclectic. Now this 'Bodyguard', complete with hilarious spoofing poster may not have mother####### (sorry!) Kevin Costner and the late, great Whitney Houston, but man is it still a hit. TIM DAVID HARVEY.
Further Watching: '2 Guns', 'Big Game', 'Deadpool'.
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