Hitman

The simple script, which piles up elements like pseudo-strong character psychology or somewhat confusing relationships between them, was meant to serve as a mere pretext for one fight after another, but in the end, it remained "underutilized." It’s a dramatically mismanaged endeavor, where too much time is wasted on meaningless chatter and too little on fighting for no apparent reason. Scenes of fistfights combined with shooting appear only in the second half, and out of those, only two manage to truly get you on the edge of your seat. The scene in the elevator immediately captivates with its original location, but unfortunately, it is edited too quickly, which does it a disservice. However, the absolute triumph comes in the final showdown, thanks to the efforts of the choreographers. Different opinions on their strength start exchanging bullets with fists, and to top it off, a classic katana is added to the mix. Despite its undeniable qualities, The Contract Killer remains just an average affair, especially when considering such "rudimentary" aspects as the annoyingly intrusive music and the uninspired camera work, which inevitably bring down my overall rating. (18/09/2005)