Hitmen

A couple are targeted by multiple assassins over a bounty.

Lauren (Platt) and Luke (Caltagirone) are an English married couple who due to unfortunate circumstances end up beating a young American man to death while having a drink in a pub. To make things worse, the victim was the grandson of Michael (Roberts), a wealthy man in New York City, who uses his criminal connections to place a bounty on the heads of the unlucky couple. A number of highly-skilled killers show interest in the opportunity at go after the couple. Will Lauren and Luke be able to evade their pursuers?

This feature is a rather entertaining dark comedy crime film about loss, revenge, marriage and romance and it contains many interesting characters. The narrative begins with the killing of the young American, then introduces the characters, including the hitmen (and hitwomen), before they set of to find the couple, which results in shootings, deaths and tense moments as the couple tries to flee. As their are quite a few trained and experienced assassins here, there are many nasty killings and watching the deadly professionals do what they do best is the highlight of the film. Of course the violence is not the only element that makes this movie watchable, as there is plenty of dark humour and Platt and Caltagirone deliver amusing performances. The script is also emotional at times, exploring the effects of loss and the consequences of the desire for revenge.

The characters are another highlight of the film and there are many of them. Lauren and Luke are the targets of the story, a simple couple whose marriage is going through a crisis. Michael is the vengeful elderly man who initiates the manhunt and has a clumsy and immature son named Paris (Ronan Summers), who is the father of the deceased American. Arguably, the assassins are the ones who take the spotlight and they all get the chance to demonstrate their killing talents. The killers include a sniper, three young women whose father was a crime lord, a hitman played by former professional mixed martial artist George St-Pierre and Justin (Aurelio) who changes his perspective on killing following a devastating loss. Another character that stands out is Lauren's brother, a huge former boxer who is now the owner of a pub.

The director does a great job and creates wonderful aerial shots and some well-executed long takes. Director of photography Laura Van De Hel deserves commendations for the outstanding cinematography and the rich soundtrack contains a variety of tracks. Credit also goes to Elijah Rowen who provides the voice-over and also stars in the feature.

This is a revenge film about a bounty and the people who are involved in it. It is a thrilling ride with an intriguing plot, a great deal of shooting, entertaining dialogue and a collection of great characters. Crucially, the feature looks into the joys of being in love, the pain of loss and the abyss that vengeance leads to. It does feel overlong due to the last third of its running time, which moves slowly, nevertheless, that does not do much damage.