Hitman

Based on the video game series of the same title, Hitman suffers from a severe identity crisis.

The film combines the mind-warping of the Bourne franchise, the religion of The Boondock Saints and the fancy gadgets of the Bond series, but fails to find its own niche in the action genre. These similarities are cheap knockoffs of the originals, and the result is a mind-numbing and uninspiring mess.

Hitman follows Agent 47 (Timothy Olyphant) from his early days at an assassin academy-which involved monks, head-shaving and barcode-branding-to his "work" out in the field. Agent 47 globe-trots in a designer suit, equipped with suitcases of weapons and a computer with his assignments-all monogrammed with an ultra-sleek, blood red logo. Interpol Agent Mike Wittier (Dougray Scott) is on Agent 47's heels, following him from Niger to England to Russia, franticly informing each country official of his prey's deadliness.

Agent 47's character setup, though thoroughly unexplained, has the potential for Patrick Bateman-like glory. Quickly, however, the film falls flat. Despite an early hotel scene with some sumptuous imagery and taut fight sequences, the film's action pales in comparison to the Hollywood standard. Agent 47 sometimes has the precise brutality of Jason Bourne, but, for the most part, his movements are sloppy.

It seems that, at every level, Agent 47 is a contradiction. He shows signs of affection towards Nika (Olga Kurylenko), but his decision to protect only her is never explained. He follows orders from his computer, but often takes agency into his own hands and disobeys his superior. Screenwriter Skip Woods never really decides what type of hero Agent 47 should be: he fleshes out the plot and the characters just enough for mediocrity, but nowhere near enough to have any effect. Not suprisingly, Olyphant struggles with his unfocused role and fails to grab hold of the viewer's attention.

Hitman was most likely the product of a checklist of what makes a movie "badass:" topless Ukrainian model, classical music played over bloody gunfights, bald assassin always dressed in a suit. Despite this immediate appeal to the male teenage population, even these superficial pleasures aren't satisfying. Hitman is as disposable as the barcode on Agent 47's head suggests.