The Hitman’s Bodyguard (2017)

Directed by: Patrick Hughes | 118 minutes | action, comedy | Actors: Samuel L. Jackson, Ryan Reynolds, Gary Oldman, Elodie Yung, Salma Hayek, Tine Joustra, Barry Atsma, Noortje Herlaar, Abbey Hoes, Tsuwayki Saotome, Roy Hill, Richard E. Grant, Rod Hallett, Yuri Kolokolnikov, Nadia Konakchieva Valentin Stojanov, Georgie Glen, Michael Gor, Sam Hazeldine, Joaquim de Almeida

A touch of patriotism is never far away when your own country is featured in a Hollywood movie. Unfortunately for the Dutch, that doesn’t happen very often, although it has become a small trend in recent years to use our little country as a background. A while back, protagonists Samuel L. Jackson and Ryan Reynolds were strolling through Amsterdam, among other things to shoot a film. The final product is finally here and the team behind ‘The Hitman’s Bodyguard’ offer a very simple yet extremely entertaining action movie.

Because make no mistake about it, the plot of the film is extremely simple. The corrupt President Dukhovich (Gary Oldman) is imprisoned and his trial takes place in The Hague. However, no one dares to testify against the evil head of state and the people who dare to be tracked down and murdered by his subjects. However, hit man Darius Kincaid (Samuel L. Jackson) is not silent and is released to travel to The Hague and imprison the president once and for all. To protect Kincaid from the various assassination attempts, Michael Bryce (Ryan Reynolds), the world’s top bodyguard, is hired.

It’s a well-known tune. A collaboration ensues between two people who do not trust each other and who do not think they need each other. Everyone knows how the movie then progresses and eventually ends. The predictability is therefore also the biggest blemish on the print. The entire playing time serves as a vehicle to give Reynolds and Jackson plenty of room for cool action and funny one-liners. The smooth dialogues are bursting with swear words and the two actors visibly enjoy this production.

As thin as the plot of ‘The Hitman’s Bodyguard’ is, both the simple storytelling and the discarded performance of a classy actor like Oldman do not diminish the amount of fun the viewer can have with this film. The chemistry between the main characters works well and while that’s the only thing ‘The Hitman’s Bodyguard’ excels at, it’s good enough to make it work. And let’s face it, there’s something about seeing Samuel L. Jackson tearing through Amsterdam’s canals in a speedboat while being chased by a bunch of Russian killers, some of which Ryan Reynolds beats down in one of the many idyllic Dutch alleys.