Worth renting, but not buying.
The plot is absolutely, 100%, stone-cold predictable simply from the premise. Still, Rubinek does an excellent job with his main gimmick for the film...smooth, seamless scene transitions between different time periods and geographic locations. They are worth waiting for.
The movie is a black comedy, but I didn't really find much humor in the wry situations. I'm not sure if they were not-enough or a little-too-much.
Mantegna goes a bit overboard in playing the laid-back "button man" as part-philosopher and part-salesman, but he does an adequate job. Sam Rockwell fares better as the kid who grows into the profession, enjoying it a bit more than he probably should. His desire to do something in a way that's "different" reminds me of a newly-wed couple looking for that new sexual position.
Durning is wasted in his role, as we never take him seriously as a threat to anyone, much less as a stone-cold killer. Chaykin fares better as a basically inscrutable "boss" who pulls the strings through some sort of managerial fog.
The cameos by Macy and Danson are good, but a bit strained. We're so busy watching them as victims in inescapable circumstances that we don't keep them in the proper perspective. The bit parts they play are overwhelmed by our expectations.
I enjoyed the movie, but, if you really want an interesting take on the "old hit-man bringing along a younger guy", try ,"Cohen & Tate" (1989), which I find has much more interesting dynamics between the protagonists.
The plot is absolutely, 100%, stone-cold predictable simply from the premise. Still, Rubinek does an excellent job with his main gimmick for the film...smooth, seamless scene transitions between different time periods and geographic locations. They are worth waiting for.
The movie is a black comedy, but I didn't really find much humor in the wry situations. I'm not sure if they were not-enough or a little-too-much.
Mantegna goes a bit overboard in playing the laid-back "button man" as part-philosopher and part-salesman, but he does an adequate job. Sam Rockwell fares better as the kid who grows into the profession, enjoying it a bit more than he probably should. His desire to do something in a way that's "different" reminds me of a newly-wed couple looking for that new sexual position.
Durning is wasted in his role, as we never take him seriously as a threat to anyone, much less as a stone-cold killer. Chaykin fares better as a basically inscrutable "boss" who pulls the strings through some sort of managerial fog.
The cameos by Macy and Danson are good, but a bit strained. We're so busy watching them as victims in inescapable circumstances that we don't keep them in the proper perspective. The bit parts they play are overwhelmed by our expectations.
I enjoyed the movie, but, if you really want an interesting take on the "old hit-man bringing along a younger guy", try ,"Cohen & Tate" (1989), which I find has much more interesting dynamics between the protagonists.