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Hitman
20th Century Fox

Hitman reviews
Critic Score
Metascore: 35 Metascore out of 100
User Score  
6.7 out of 10
based on 22 reviews
Read critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
based on 116 votes
Read user comments
Rate this movie

MPAA RATING: R for strong bloody violence, language, and some sexuality/nudity

Starring Timothy Olyphant, Dougray Scott, Olga Kurylenko, Robert Knepper, Ulrich Thomsen, and Michael Offei

Based on the top-selling, award-winning videogame franchise, the HITMAN is a genetically-engineered, elite assassin known only as Agent 47. His hallmarks are a lethal grace, unwavering precision, and resolute pride in his work. But even 47 couldn't anticipate a "random equation" in his life of exactitude: the unexpected stirrings of his conscience and the unfamiliar emotions aroused in him by a mysterious Russian woman. (20th Century Fox)


GENRE(S): Action  |  Crime  |  Suspense/Thriller  
WRITTEN BY: Skip Woods  
DIRECTED BY: Xavier Gens  
RELEASE DATE: DVD: March 11, 2008 
Theatrical: November 21, 2007 
RUNNING TIME: 100 minutes, Color 
ORIGIN: France / USA 

What The Critics Said

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

75
Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert
Hitman stands right on the threshold between video games and art. On the wrong side of the threshold, but still, give it credit.
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70
Washington Post Desson Thomson
The best movie derived from a violent computer game we've ever seen. You can take or leave that kind of qualified high-five, but, for us, it was a thoroughly entertaining experience. Think of bargain basement "James Bond" amped up into TV den-sittin', mouse-clickin' overdrive. But with human actors.
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70
Chicago Reader J.R. Jones
In the finest tradition of adolescent identification figures, he's not only ruthless, dispatching numerous baddies with hair-trigger shots to the head, but profoundly desexualized, brushing off the insistent come-ons of a slinky prostitute (Olga Kurylenko) he's taken under his wing.
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50
Chicago Tribune Kelley L. Carter
Here’s all you really need to know before the opening credits roll in Hitman: There’s going to be a lot of bloodshed. And that’s a good thing, considering there isn’t much dialogue to carry the film.
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50
Baltimore Sun John Anderson
Essentially an episode of "24." Which may be a step up from a video game, but it's getting hard to tell.
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50
Premiere Karl Rozemeyer
Ultimately Hitman is about bullets, blood, and bombs. For die-hard fans of the videogame, there is much to relish in terms of cobblestone car chases, punishing fistfights, cool weaponry, impossible physical feats, and ear-popping gun battles that rage through exclusive hotels in exotic locations.
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50
New York Daily News Jack Mathews
As a movie on its own, it's simple monotony. Olyphant, affecting Clint Eastwood's Dirty Harry voice, is about as menacing as Mr. Clean, and the action scenes - whether the weapons are fists, feet, swords or guns - fly past without any tension or suspense. Hitman is a miss.
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50
TV Guide Maitland McDonagh
This violent action is stylish but painfully formulaic, even by the undemanding standards of video-game narratives.
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50
The Globe and Mail (Toronto) Rick Groen
It's all meant, I suppose, to conjure up cold visions of Terminators and Robocops past, or, in this post-9/11 world, of bin Ladens and Bushes present. If so, conjure at will.
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50
San Francisco Chronicle Peter Hartlaub
Not a spectacular movie, but the action scenes are well shot, there's no shortage of R-rated gore and the plot moves along quickly enough to mask the fact that the whole endeavor is completely ridiculous.
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42
Seattle Post-Intelligencer William Arnold
The movie's one saving grace is Olyphant ("Live Free and Die Hard," HBO's "Deadwood"), whose sociopathic elegance is gradually winning, and whose dry, monotonic, Eastwood-like delivery of one-liners is frequently, if perhaps unintentionally, very funny.
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38
Boston Globe Ty Burr
There have been plenty of movies adapted from video games before, but Hitman may be the first one that actually feels like a computer wrote and directed it.
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33
The Onion (A.V. Club) Tasha Robinson
By the time Olyphant leaves an enemy in the most ridiculous deathtrap since the '60s "Batman," just because it looks kinda neat, the whole project has started to feel like "Ultraviolet 2: The Further Stupidening."
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30
LA Weekly Scott Foundas
While Gens can splatter gore with the best of them -- early in the film, a human body packed with C4 goes off in graphic detail -- he fails to stage so much as a single rousing action scene, even when he has four double-fisted swordsmen facing off inside an abandoned subway car. Game over. The audience loses.
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30
The Hollywood Reporter Kirk Honeycutt
All the while, the music screams and clamors like an ignored child because director Xavier Gens and writer Skip Woods can't pump suspense into this inept mess.
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30
The New York Times Manohla Dargis
Hitman exploits every action-flick cliché imaginable and still manages to be dull. It’s bang, boom, blah -- action movies for bored dummies.
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30
Film Threat Pete Vonder Haar
Let's start with the obvious: Olyphant just isn't that intimidating an assassin. Think of some of cinema's more memorable button men: Léon, Luca Brasi, Frank Nitti...that's right, not a pretty boy in the bunch.
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25
Entertainment Weekly Clark Collis
Based on a videogame, Hitman could be the year's dumbest movie.
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25
Portland Oregonian Shawn Levy
Seeing Hitman isn't like playing a video game or even like watching someone else play a video game. It's like watching someone stupid play a bad video game.
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20
Austin Chronicle Marc Savlov
To be sure, Hitman is a lousy film, but like the video game that inspired it, it's also great fun, drawing as it does on everything from James Bondian Eurotrash panache to Vin Diesel's moribund XXX character.
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12
New York Post Kyle Smith
If someone ran this guy through a scanner, the readout would say: “Mark down and stock in straight-to-video aisle."
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10
Variety Todd McCarthy
A Eurotrashy vidgame knockoff that misses its target by a mile. Numbingly unthrilling as it lurches from one violent encounter to another, the pic's dark roots in an electronic, non-dramatic medium are plain to see, and unsuspecting gamers lured to theaters will soon wish they were back home participating in the action themselves.
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What Our Users Said

Vote Now!The average user rating for this movie is 6.7 (out of 10) based on 116 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Kyoin gave it an8:
First of all let me say I have not really played the Hitman games. That being said I think the portrayel of a kind of anti-social run & gun assassin was great. The action was pretty good especially the 'sword showdown.' The story was modirately good, but got a little confusing at times. The relationship with 47 & Nika (Olga Kurylenko) was a little underveloped, but then again what can you expect from an assassin? Overall it was fun if you like a violent flick sprinkled with nudity here and there. 8/10

H4MM3RH34D Volkova gave it a6:
I was a bit hesitant in buying this movie. As a fan of the Hitman game series I thought the movie might have ruined it for me like Doom did. But I was really surprised at how good it was. OK so some aspects needed improvement (geography correction and storyline) but considering its a movie based on a game I think it was very good. And I think the critics who say 47 is a bad actor haven't played the games since he's meant to be emotionless. Which brings me to one last criticism. Why does 47 suddenly get emotions and feel sorry for that chick who goes with him (i forgot her name). I mean, alright I guess they we're trying to put romance in the movie but don't kill the whole idea of 47 in the process please!

Jay gave it an8:
I am glad I didn't read the reviews beforehand or I might have skipped this. I was a little suspicious of Olyphant as Hitman but he pulls it off, and I think people that don't like this either think it's a Bourne Identity knockoff, which it can't be since Hitman precedes it, or just can't get down with a sociopathic killer, which is understandable. However, for what it is, it is excellent, and there was actually no sappy bullshit scenes that looked like they might happen throughout, he has some minor empathy as the story goes on but still stays true to his character, which is insanely rare. Overall, it's good. I normally fast-forward through half of movies because it's all predictable, I only fast forwarded once and ended up having to go back because the scene I thought was going to happen didn't. Good show.

Jonas H. gave it a3:
I have played every Hitman game and loved every one, and I must admit: This movie has the shell. The agent's name is 47, he's brought up in a facility and he's a hitman. The problem is, that it doesn't vaguely capture the spirit, or the core, of the Hitman games. What seems the most misplaced is the pseudo-romantic little-boyish interaction between 47 and the Russian girl. In some ways the movie could have been rated as a passable action movie, but truth be told, IO-Interactive's directors and designers did a far better job on the story-telling and entertainment value. This is not good when comparing a movie to a game. So, basically the movie is an empty shell, which in no way has earned its title.

ddd boy gave it a3:
A message to the director and producers: Russia does not border Turkey, and Interpol is based in Lyon, France not London, England. I know the teenage boys who liked this movie don't care about factual geography, but it's unfair to dumb down a movie that's already dumb.

Chris gave it a9:
The sheer intensity exuded by Olyphant and the emotional performance by the lovely Olga make this movie what it is. It was the interaction between the two: the way Agent 47 cared for her wellbeing and yet brutally disposed of the corrupt characters in such a cold, calm, and flawless manner. The two sides of his character were wonderfully played. It gives a glimpse into the life of 47... "How does a good man decide when to kill?" I've played all the games but I prefer the movie depiction of 47. The story could use some work, but it didn't ruin the movie for me. I'm buying the DVD!

whatever gave it a7:
It was ok, I would have rather seen Jason Stathom as Agent 47 It also side tracked from the game quite a bit Would have rather just seen the story straight from Blood Money turned into a movie Still, it's not terrible.

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