The Hitman’s Bodyguard was a pleasant surprise during the summer of 2017, an action comedy buddy flick released smack dab in the middle of the height of the superhero blockbuster era and exceeded expectations due to the undeniable chemistry between stars Samuel L. Jackson and Ryan Reynolds. While slightly derivative, the funny banter, well done action scenes guided by Expendables 3 director Patrick Hughes, and scene stealing, against type performance from Salma Hayek in a small cameo role pushed the film past its flaws and into a profitable release. As is customary in Hollywood, this led to a greenlit sequel featuring more Reynolds, more Jackson, way more Hayek, and more explosions. But will turning the dial up to 11 and simply giving us more of what we enjoyed break the well-balanced formula that made the first entry greater than the sum of its parts in the first place?
In Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard, we rejoin Michael Bryce (Ryan Reynolds) is set to give up on being a bodyguard again and making peace with it, until Sonia Kincaid (Salma Hayek) finds him and asks for his help. She needs his help in recovering her hitman husband Darius (Samuel L. Jackson), after he is taken by mobsters. After getting him back, they are caught by Interpol agent Bobby O’Neill (Frank Grillo), who needs their help in locating a terrorist mastermind named Aristotle Papadopoulos (Antonio Banderas), who wants to destroy the European power grid and infrastructure since the European Union is planning to impose more sanctions on Greece.
With the film’s predecessor being such a pleasant surprise four years ago featuring indelible chemistry between Reynolds and Jackson and a comedic turn from Hayek as a foul-mouthed object of desire that was as much of a shock as the quality of the film itself, it was no surprise that Lionsgate took another bite at the apple and sought to duplicate its success. The same high octane action sequences that draw upon Hughes’ experience with The Expendables franchise are back and increased to the max as are Reynolds and Jackson’s snarky dialogue and, most notably, Hayek who is elevated from a supporting character to one of its leads. For a film who’s previous iteration delicately balanced on line separating generic action comedy overload to charming change of pace in a summer cinematic landscape overrun by CGI’d spandexed heroes, upping the ante in Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard serves us too much of a good thing and loses what made the first such a welcome revelation. Reynolds and Jackson still work as a pair, but you can feel the script’s descent into the problem with sequels as it gives us too much humor with jokes that don’t entirely connect and feel like a rehash of the first. What made Hayek so charming in the first film wears off here as a byproduct of her exponential increase in screen time. We’re now used to the character and her style and with the novelty gone, so is her effectiveness. The introduction of a third between the Reynolds and Jackson duo that performed so well in the first film throws off the balance and chemistry that made it successful. The film does attempt to replace Hayek’s role as the surprise cameo with some other big name stars, one of which I won’t spoil and the other Banderas, and while they do perform admirably, their impact just isn’t the same.
This isn’t to say that Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard is without any entertainment value or positive aspects, as Sonia’s character arc involving her pursuit of motherhood gives Hayek a bit of room to play with some sentimental, emotional performing and ends with a hilarious pay-off in the film’s ending that could also lead into a sequel, and Michael’s journey toward self-assuredness both professionally and personally at least tries to avoid making the story completely about violence and humorous profanity. The film’s more emotional and serious moments flow well within the rest of the action comedy and provide just enough levity to keep things from going completely over the top. But the bread and butter of Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard was to be the comedic chemistry of Reynolds and Jackson and the novelty of Hayek’s turn as a profane, vicious partner of a hitman, but the new mix of all three sharing copious amounts of screen time results in the film for the most part succumbing to its most generic elements unlike it so narrowly avoided the first time. Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard is a film that is good for a date night with your partner, or a night-in on a streaming service a few months from now, but not ripe for any exploration outside of those specific circumstances.
Image: Lionsgate
