Director: Patrick Hughes
Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Samuel L. Jackson, Salma Hayek, Morgan Freeman, Antonio Banderas, Frank Grillo, Gary Oldman, Tom Hopper, Richard E. Grant, Caroline Goodall, Rebecca Front
Distributor: Roadshow Films
Runtime: 109 mins. Reviewed in Jul 2021
Reviewer: Fr Peter Malone msc

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Rating notes: Strong violence and coarse language

Over the top is the phrase that almost immediately springs to mind as we swirl into the comedy and action of this sequel to the popular The Hitman’s Bodyguard. Perhaps the writers and the director had the intention of going one better than the original but then opted for many better. And, it goes over many tops, not least the hyperactive performance by Hayek as Sonia, the title wife, which goes beyond the tops.

Previously, bodyguard Mike Bryce, an often-bemused Ryan Reynolds, had to accompany hitman, Darius Kincaid (Jackson) to his trial. This time, Jackson is out and wants to team up with Sonia and marry her. He suggests a bodyguard and she mishears him and tracks down Mike Bryce. Poor Mike is bereft, has lost his licence as a bodyguard (has dreams of his winning the annual award but sabotaged by Kincaid). And, worse, Mike goes off to a harassed therapist who urges him to talk to his inner self. He does use his phone to talk to himself for therapy!

Kincaid is not particularly impressed at having Mike as Sonia’s bodyguard and there is continuous comic rivalry, while Sonia is really no help.

But, the screenwriters must have been overdosing on James Bond films because they come up with a plot which more than resembles them. Here is Antonio Banderas as the contemporary Blofeld, a millionaire, desirous of superpower status, especially for his native Greece, resentful of the EU and their sanctions on Greece. He is eager for revenge on the widest scale possible, sabotaging European communications. This involves getting a USB stick (something James Bond never had to do), and the hitman and his bodyguard having to stop the insertion of the stick to avoid sabotage explosions. And Mike waits to the last millisecond to achieve his aim.

There is also an American adviser played by Frank Grillo (the screenplay even having him reference his performance with Bruce Willis, Cosmic Sin). And he tangles with the European Union’s equivalent of M, played by Caroline Goodall.

If we allow ourselves, and the invitation is powerful, to be caught up in these adventures, despite the strains on credibility, it is two hours of mindless action entertainment with laughs. But, for good measure, Morgan Freeman also turns up as Mike’s father, living in Tuscany in comfort, welcoming his son back (with Darius and the audience wondering how it is possible for Morgan Freeman to be Mike’s father!) But then, more than a few twists as well.

The film was directed by Australian, Patrick Hughes, who made a mark with his 2009 action film Red Hill. Then he landed on his feet in Hollywood, directing Stallone and co in The Expendables 3, before moving on to the first Hitman film.