Remember when mid-size budget comedies with a whacky but simple premise used to be great? The type of film you watch on a random afternoon that leaves you feeling satisfied instead of feeling like you’ve just wasted your scarce, precious free time? That’s Hit Man.
Richard Linklater’s latest, starring Glen Powell and Adria Arjona, is pure entertainment backed with an actual thought-through storyline and rich characters, providing fun and stimulation (cerebral and otherwise) in equal measure.
It follows Gary Johnson, a college professor who is hired by the police to pretend to be a hitman in order to catch people wanting to order a hit on their enemies in the act. Gary, who leads a rather uneventful life, latches on to the opportunity to experience some adventure and becomes rapidly proficient at convincing his clients he’s the real deal. When Arjona’s Madison Masters asks him to kill her husband, sparks fly and the two enter a perilous love affair.
If that sounds like a great weekend plan and you’re now wondering if it’s safe to bring your kids along, we’ve got the answers.
What is Hit Man‘s rating?
Currently enjoying a 96% score from 79 reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, Hit Man is rated R, which means audiences under the age of 17 must be accompanied by a parent or adult guardian when watching the film.
Hit Man is a lot of fun, but it does contain some violence, both verbal and physical, plenty of sexual content between the fiery romantic duo that is Powell and Arjona, and use of strong language throughout.
The film hits limited theaters Friday, May 24, followed by a Netflix release on June 7.