TIFF 2023: Hit Man Review

This will be one of many reviews during this year’s Toronto International Film Festival, to keep up with our latest coverage, click here.

Hit Man, the newest film from director Richard Linklater, is based on a true story about a cop’s time as an undercover hitman. Here, the story follows Gary Johnson (Powell), a part time philosophy professor and part time tech for the local police department who found himself entangled with Madison (Arjona), a woman trying to get out of an abusive relationship. From there, the film branches off into fiction written by Linklater and Powell. Linklater has made himself known in the indie film scene as a filmmaker with loose plotting and dialogue that feels of its moment. However, in recent years, he has been going for all types of narrative structures. It’s hard to pinpoint exactly what he is going to do next but here, he has made the next great romantic comedy.

Hit Man is easily one of Linkalter’s most accessible films next to the cult favorite, School of Rock. The film has a very simple narrative that’s easy to follow and Linklater and Powell harness the right tone. Meanwhile, Powell delivers one of the best performances of the year and one that firmly supplants himself as one of the next big movie stars. The way he takes Johnson and transforms the nerdy and gawkish professor into a convincing hitman, with the added challenge of creating and balancing several alternate hitman personas on top of his original character, is nothing short of remarkable, especially as the intensity ratchets up.

As a whole, Johnson’s journey is not only engrossing but is also aided by an incredibly tight screenplay. The signature Linklater wit can be found throughout while countless lines of dialog are sure to be quoted for years to come. Compared to the vast majority of his films, this one is incredibly tense at times as opposed to his usual calmer fare. Yet, the film’s sense of humor has that Texas slacker twang that he is so known for. However, on the other side, it is not very thematically deep or emotionally enriching. Not quite as introspective or of the moment, Hit Man feels like Linklater’s most Hollywoodized film yet.

That being said, Linklater’s distinctive voice as a director and writer can be felt in every scene, making it an absolute blast. At the end of the day, sometimes, all audiences want is a fun film to watch and Hit Man definitely fits the bill.

still courtesy of VVS Films

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Brett Schutt

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