Hired to Kill

This movie gives the impression that the worst thing anyone ever asked Brian Thompson to do was to try to act. Whether one can pin the credit on screenwriter Fred Perry or, more likely, director Nico Mastorakis, the notion also comes across that the rest of the cast were shoved into small corners where the same holds true for their performances. 'Heavy-handed' is one word we could use to describe the writing and direction; "indelicate" is another. The script includes tawdry and wholly unnecessary sexism, homophobia, and racism, and even the way female characters are written sometimes feels stereotypical and problematic. Meanwhile, even in instances where a slight measure of cleverness is demanded, the movie leaps out of bounds to take a different tack that's simply dubious (watch the scene in which Thompson and George Kennedy's characters speak in code). 'Hired to kill' at least stops short of being fully exploitative, though the small bits of gratuitous nudity are tired, and it otherwise treads a thin line. This isn't altogether terrible, but at its worst, there are times when it seems like it's trying to be.

True, the feature doesn't particularly pretend to be anything it's not, and I think anyone who stumbles upon it will know pretty well what they're in for. If you want an action-adventure romp and don't mind if it's second- or third-tier, this is the movie for you. On the other hand: 'Hired to kill' could have been a piece of purposefully overwrought, deadpan, tongue-in-cheek majesty - some lines and small inclusions are almost brilliant. Instead, even as it's distinctly overcooked at points, it feels like the picture is a little too self-serious for its own good. It's like the film didn't entirely know what it wanted to be, the tone it wanted to strike.

Still, credit where it's due: recognizing the level this title is operating on, it's modestly enjoyable. I love the filming locations, and the production design is fairly solid. The costume design and hair and makeup work are good. Action sequences aren't half bad; stunts are well done, and the effects that primarily include a lot of explosions. Putting aside guidance of the cast, Mastorakis' direction is competent. I question some of the sound effects - did you know bullets make a similar "plop" noise as paintball projectiles when they impact the human body? - but overall the contributions of those behind the scenes are pretty great, and 'Hired to kill' is technically sound.

What it comes down to, I suppose, is that I just wish a tad more mindful care were put into the writing and direction. Find your voice, and dispense with boorish indulgences, and I could even overlook a plot that is satisfactory but less than remarkable. These are the biggest weaknesses of the feature; improve on them and there's still no mistaking that this is hardly a major studio blockbuster, but it would have come off better. All the same, there are worse ways to spend 90 minutes. There's no reason 'Hired to kill' is going to be remembered in the annals of cinema history, and you definitely don't need to go out of your way for it. But for an action flick of this nature it's passably entertaining, so provided that you're not expecting more, then just relax and have fun.

Hired to Kill (1990)

** (out of 4)

A government man (George Kennedy) hires mercenary Frank Ryan (Brian Thompson) to sneak into a South American location and take out a ruthless leader (Oliver Reed) who is holding an important man (Jose Ferrer) hostage. Frank goes undercover as a gay photographer and his "models" are actually trained agents.

HIRED TO KILL comes from director Nico Mastorakis who is best remembered for his notorious film ISLAND OF DEATH. This action picture certainly isn't in the same league but if you enjoy these low-rent action movies then you should get some kicks out of this one. Obviously there's nothing ground-breaking here but there are enough campy moments to keep you entertained. Plus, viewing this film twenty-five plus years after it was made, you can't help but smile thinking back on these types of movies that were made with such famous cast members.

The entire plot to this thing is pretty stupid but in many ways you have to think parts of the screenplay are a spoof on the genre. A gay photographer? The film manages to be at its most fun during the finale when various explosion and gun fights are happening. The stunts are all well done and the explosions are great, although sadly a stuntman did lose his life. The biggest problem with the film is that there's just not too much that happens for the first hour. There are way too many dialogue scenes and not enough action.

With that said, the cast is great or at least greatly entertaining. Thompson certainly wasn't a great actor but I thought he fit this role just perfectly. Reed, I'm sure drunk, is fun to watch as is both Kennedy and Ferrer in their small roles. The woman all look good and play up the sexuality, which is never a bad thing.

When I checked for the first time the IMDB page for HIRED TO KILL I was torn between curiosity and repulsion. Curiosity because it has lots of good looking women, lots of exotic locations and also George Kennedy and Josè Ferrer in the cast. Repulsion because it has a low score and the lead is played by Brian Thompson (who at that time looked like the poor man's version of Sylvester Stallone and Jean Claude Van Damme). However I ended up enjoying it very much and I couldn't believe the bad reputation this movie had for years.

The movie is about mercenary Frank Ryan (Thompson) who is summoned by Agent Thomas (Kennedy) to go to Cyprus and free a revolutionary leader (Ferrer) held hostage by President Bartos (Oliver Reed). At the beginning Frank is reluctant, but in the end he accepts and he has its own plan: he poses as a fashion photographer and lets some women mercenaries pose as his models and after some photoshoots they go to the mission. How they will make it? See the movie.

This movie is nothing special. It has lots of action and some cool sequences here and there. I think that people who lived in the 1990s and who even saw it back then would have lots of nostalgia since there are also some songs of that period.

However, don't expect a masterpiece of the action genre like DIE HARD or POINT BREAK. Just think about it like one of the many B-movies of the genre that were made in a period when they usually went also straight to video that can be enjoyed even by non-fans of the genre.

Hired to Kill is like if Andy Sidaris made The Expendables but with none of his usual energy. It boasts performances bad enough to make even Arnie wince, forgettable action and comedy that is completely unintentional. Yet, it's a pitch-perfect encapsulation of 90s direct-to-video shlock with a fairly meaty budget given all the explosions and globe-trotting location work, with fan favourite Brian Thompson getting to play the hero for once and bolstered by relatively memorable supporting roles by frigging Oliver Reed and George Kennedy. There's no real style to the direction but it's all done with competency and earnestness which shine through the film's otherwise weaker aspects while Jerry Grant's score feels like it was constructed from the outtakes he had left over from his work on Magnum P. I. and The A-Team. While it's a little dull at points, Hired to Kill is still an entertaining and pacey little B-movie, if a bit bloodless.

This is a movie with cult potential.Brian Thompson(in a rare leading role.)is the misogynistic soldier of fortune called on to lead an army of seven beautiful fashion models/ mercenaries to rescue an imprisoned leader from a despotic regime.Good supporting cast in the shape of the late Oliver Reed and Jose Ferrar.It also features a gay kiss scene(of sorts) between Reed and Thompson!The dialogue is cliched, but the action is good.The girls look as if they escaped from a Robert Palmer video.Good voyeuristic fun!