Hitman (2007 film)

For other uses, see Hitman (film).

Hitman 2 code name 69 (due 2009)
Teaser poster for the film
Directed by	Xavier Gens
Written by	Skip Woods
Produced by	Chuck Gordon Adrian Askariah Daniel Alter Luc Besson
Starring	Timothy Olyphant Dougray Scott Robert Knepper Olga Kurylenko
Music by	Geoff Zanelli
Distributed by	20th Century Fox
Release dates	November 21, 2007 November 29, 2007 November 30, 2007
Running time	94 minutes
Countries	United States Russia
Languages	English Russian

Hitman is a 2007 film based on the video game series of the same name. The film was directed by Xavier Gens and stars Timothy Olyphant and Dougray Scott. Hitman was released on November 21, 2007.

Plot

The film opens with a montage showing a group of bald, blue-eyed boys receiving tattoos of bar codes and then shows them being instructed in the use of firearms & martial arts.

Interpol agent Mike Whittier discovers Agent 47 in his study, where the two talk briefly. The scene flashes back 3 months, as 47 is completing a hit in St. Petersburg, Russia. He receives a communication from his Organization contact, Diana, and is told he is to kill his next target, Russian President Mikhail Belicoff, publicly.

Agent 47 succeeds in killing Belicoff using a sniper rifle to achieve a head shot from over 4 km away. However, when 47 is in the train station ready to leave, he's told there's a witness–Nika Boronina–he has to kill. Confronting Nika on a street, he doesn't kill her as he realizes she's never seen him before. Additionally, Belicoff's death was covered up, being portrayed in the media as a grazing wound.

Agent 47 confronts Diana about who would want Nika dead when she wasn't a witness and why Belicoff is still being portrayed as alive. Outside, Mike Whittier and his partner have been tipped off that 47 is in the hotel. They encounter the FSB, lead by Yuri Marklov, who sends in an emergency response team to capture 47. Diana calls 47 directly, informing him that it was Belicoff himself who took out the contract. The troops attack and a hotel battle ensues. Agent 47 successfully escapes, however, the Organization he works for has dispatched assassins to kill him for failing his mission.

Agent 47 kidnaps Nika–who was about to be killed by her driver–and questions her. She suggests 47 may have killed one of Belicoff's doubles, but 47 denies that possibility. The two try to leave by train, but are intercepted by the Organization's assassins. Agent 47 is able to defeat four of them, defeats Mike Whittier who pursued, and escapes with Nika.

Agent 47 arranges a meeting with Agent Smith from the CIA. Agent 47 makes a deal: if Smith helps him sometime in the future, 47 will kill Belicoff's brother, Udre, a slave trafficker, and arms dealer. Smith accepts the deal. Agent 47 and Nika travel to Turkey and after kidnapping and impersonating arms-dealer Mr. Price, he succeeds in killing Udre.

The death of Udre was a set-up designed to draw Belicoff's double–who, working with Yuri and an unseen cabal, is part of a plot to have a puppet leader in control of Russia–into the open. Agent 47 kidnaps Yuri and forces him to have his own FSB agents try to shoot "Belicoff" as he delivers a eulogy for Udre. Agent 47, disguised as a soldier, takes the double and kills him in the church. He then allows himself to be taken into custody by Interpol and Mike Whittier. However, Agent Smith intercedes at the last minute, allowing 47 to escape.

There is a flash forward to a conversation between agent Whittier and 47, which is taking place at Whitter's house. After wrapping up their conversation, 47 reveals the body of Mr. Price, shaved and dressed to look like 47. They make a deal in which Whitter would go along with 47's plan, admitting that the body in his home is the real 47. As 47 leaves, he turns to Whittier and says that he hopes to never see Whittier again, for the sake of both of them.

The scene then changes to Nika, who is shown picking up an envelope from an undisclosed sender. Inside it, there were papers and a message saying that she now owned a vineyard (she had told 47 of her childhood dream of having one). Meanwhile, 47 is watching her from afar, through the scope of his sniper rifle. He then looks at the corpse of another Hitman, lying close to him, and says "I told you to leave her alone. You should have listened." He then turns back, and walks away.

Production

In February 2003, Hitman makers Eidos and IO Interactive entered negotiations with Hollywood production companies to adapt the video game to film. Twentieth Century Fox eventually acquired the rights and hired screenwriter Skip Woods to pen the screenplay with actor Vin Diesel executive producing and starring in the film. In December 2006, Vin Diesel stepped down from the role. In January 2007, Timothy Olyphant was cast into the lead role with director Xavier Gens attached at the helm. In March, actor Dougray Scott was cast as the antagonist to Agent 47, with Olga Kurylenko, Robert Knepper, Ulrich Thomsen, and Michael Offei also joining the cast. Production began the week of March 27, 2007 in Sofia, Bulgaria and lasted 12 weeks. A second unit also shot in locations including London, Istanbul, St. Petersburg, and South Africa.. The release of the movie was set back a few months before release, this was to allow for the reshooting of several scenes, most of which required shortening of dialogue or changing the location. This removed the backstory of some of the main characters. A major scene was also reshot at this stage, replacing the outdoor train platform sequence shown in the trailers, with an underground sword fight between the four assassins. Reports before the movies release confirmed that not only reshoots were taking place, but that Fox may have totally removed Xavier Gens from the project. Nicolas de Toth was also brought in to edit the newly reshot movie, which didn't strengthen the claims made by Fox that they weren't interfering with Xavier Gens' movie.

Release

Hitman was originally slated to be released on October 12 2007 in the United States and Canada, but the film's release was postponed to November 21 2007. Hitman opened in 2,458 theaters in the United States and Canada, grossing $13,180,769 in its opening weekend, ranking fourth at the box office. The following weekend, Hitman opened in 12 markets, having the following highlights: $150,355 in 38 theaters in Indonesia, $224,449 in 37 theaters in Malaysia. and $244,329 in 32 theaters in the Philippines. In Taiwan, the film opened in fourth place with approximately $100,000. The film also performed weakly in Lebanon with $19,321 in 6 theaters. As of January 26 2008, the film has grossed $39,586,389 in the United States and Canada and $56,225,387 in other territories for a worldwide total of $95,811,776.

Despite its financial success, the film has been almost universally panned by critics, the most common complaints being a lacking plot, dry acting and ultra violent, ultra serious tone. On the film review aggregate website Rotten Tomatoes, Hitman has received a Rotten rating of 13% based on 82 reviews, and it has received a Rotten rating of 6% from 19 "Cream of the Crop" reviewers from mainstream news outlets. Although top film critic Roger Ebert gave it three stars out of four, saying "Hitman stands right on the threshold between video games and art. On the wrong side of the threshold, but still, give it credit." On the website Metacritic, the film has received a metascore of 35 out of 100 based on 22 reviews. Fans of the Hitman games mostly praised the film but also criticized it for its lack of stealth action, which is the significant theme of the game's gameplay, as opposed to fast paced in the film.

Blu-ray Disc & DVD release

An unrated version of Hitman was released in the high definition Blu-ray format on March 11th 2008, and features extras including deleted scenes, an alternate ending and a gag reel. This version also features a special digital copy of the movie which you can transfer to a portable media device like an iPod. A standard definition DVD was released on March 11th as well in three versions. A single disc theatrical version, a single disc unrated version, and an unrated special edition including many extras, and the digital copy mentioned above. The unrated cut of the movie, as said by Fox, shall be packed with "never-before-seen explosive action" despite only boasting 1 extra minute in running time. The only changes to this version though are a couple of scenes extended and more blood added in., the UK version of the film will be available on Blu-ray and DVD from 31st March 2008.

Included in the DVD/Blu-Ray edition is an alternate ending in which 47 fails to protect Nika and she is killed.

Miscellaneous

• The opening montage showing young assassins being trained was taken in part from the Dark Angel (TV series) opening video montage, including images of "young Max" (played by Geneva Locke). Both the film Hitman and the Dark Angel television series rights are owned by 20th Century Fox.
• After he jumps from his hotel room's balcony with the rope, Agent 47 swings into another hotel room below, where two children are playing Hitman: Blood Money.
• After he walks away from the woman at the bar, he goes to his hotel room, 501. When the FSB use a battering ram to break his door down it is room 515.

External links

• Official site
• Hitman at IMDb
• Hitman at Rotten Tomatoes
• Hitman at Metacritic
• Hitman at Box Office Mojo
• Hitman at AllMovie
• Detailed Comparison between Theatrical Version and Unrated Version