The Last Hit Man

While there's enough action to sustain the drama, this is not a shoot-em-up production. A father, the hit-man, has brought his daughter into the business. He must then cope with failing health, and the dangers presented by a failed hit, by bringing in a partner.

Not at all what anyone might expect in a hit-man movie made with today's thud and blunder styling. This is actually about the interactions of people, and is done with a lot of care. Excellent low-key drama with top-caliber acting and touches of black comedy.

Loved it. I definitely have to check out all else that this writer/director has done.

While I normally don't watch this type of movie, it wasn't that bad for a bad guy movie. This isn't a really deep movie, but it's not a typical hollywood shoot em up. I thought the main characters were well acted. The pacing was a little slow, given one of the main themes it's somewhat understandable. The dialogue could have used a little brushing up, not a big fan of cussing in movies. A little more back ground on the mains would have been nice, to better understand why he went into the business. This isn't a highly polished hollywood style movie, but it kind of draws you in and remains interesting enough to continue watching.

Director-writer Smets injects life into a tired genre with this top-notch throw-back which combines black comedy and genuine pathos with ease and skill. Smets was certainly influenced by crime dramas of the 70's (most notably, The Mechanic). His subdued style and pacing is a welcome change from the usual shock and awe of Hollywood. His characters speak from the heart and head and could be your father, sister, or next door neighbour. The film never takes itself too seriously until it matters, nor does it get bogged down with pop-culture references and post-modern irony. I look forward to more films by this talented director.

I was skeptical, when I saw this on Amazon Prime. Glad I took the bait and watched it.

To those of us pro-2A pro-firearm folks, Joe Mantegna is one conservative actor who knows his guns, and how to shoot. So its always interesting to see him in films.

Long story short, if you like a decent firearm flick, you'll enjoy this one. The jist is a father/daughter hit-team dealing with an (unfortunate) everyday family dilemma all families seem to have to deal with -- terminal cancer.

So the story revolves around how a family whose obscure business deals with the reality of a terminal disease.

That's not all of it, just enough to wet your whistle. Bottom line, its worth the 90 minutes out of your life to watch, if you are an action/gun movie guy like I am.

V/r, ColonialOak

We didn't know what to hope for when we sat down to watch The Last Hit Man. The trailer sort of prepared us for more of an action film. There's plenty of action, but the real story is more internal. We got very caught up in it.

There are some very funny lines and almost a screwball style to parts of the movie, especially at the start; and then it settles into a bit of a nightmare and leads to a conclusion that is at the same time satisfying and open-ended.

In the "about" feature the director said that during shooting the main actors would come to him with suggestions about lines that could be cut to make the story tighter and the to tell more by saying less. The result works pretty well, even though there is a slight sag toward pathos at one point.

We will certainly watch it again, and will buy copies of the DVD to share with others.

LATE NEWS!~ April 2: "Last Hit Man" won Best Feature Film at the Canadian Film Festival in Toronto in March!