Review of 'The Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard'

A sequel of 2017's The Hitman's Bodyguard sees bodyguard Michael Bryce (Ryan Reynolds) preparing to retire when approached by the familiar ex-con Sonia Kincaid (Salma Hayek) who needs his help in rescuing her husband, hitman Darius (Samuel L. Jackson) from his mobster kidnappers. Once this is done the three are once again approached by Interpol to track down terrorist Aristotle Papadopoulos (played against type by a wonderfully nasty Antonio Banderas) who wants to destroy the European power grid in protest for economic sanctions against Greece. Attempting to turn over a new leaf, Michael has renounced the use of guns and ends up bearing the brunt of the violence thrown at the three. After getting help from his (also) bodyguard stepfather, Bryce Senior (a chillingly nasty and brutal Morgan Freeman), the three are captured by Aristotle's gang. Michael and Darius manage to escape, leaving behind Sonia who has a bit of a history with Aristotle…Will they manage to rescue her and save the European Union?

Another silly action-filled, ultra-violent outing with hitman and bodyguard duo Bryce and Kincaid with the added fun of having Kincaid's filthy-mouthed wife in on the action instead of being locked up in a jail cell (as she was in the first film). Part of the fun here are some of the long running gags such as Darius and his wife not being able to keep their hands off each other, much to the revulsion of Bryce (the corny, but amusing, twist at the very end of the film is the culmination of this thread). As with the original, “Hitman's Wife” has Bryce being the serious professional while Darius is the laid back, fun loving murderer just wanting to enjoy life. There are some famous faces here with Morgan Freeman, Antonio Banderas and Richard E. Grant joining the cast.

This is most definitely an ensemble piece with the three working very well off of each other though it does often get a bit tiring with the never ending quips mixed with incredible violent action sequences. In other words, still quite amusing and entertaining though perhaps not as much as the first. It seems a bit like they are going through the numbers rather than introducing anything really new or interesting to the mix. “Hitman's Wife” is more of the same…

Rating: “Really good but I have some issues”

Review Date: 2022-01-15

Directed by: Patrick Hughes

Studio: Millennium Media

Year: 2021

Length: 100 minutes

Genre: Action/Adventure

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8385148/

• The Hitman's Bodyguard (2017)