With lower than a month earlier than it leaves Netflix, now could be the time to meet up with the underrated Samuel L. Jackson buddy-cop film The Hitman’s Bodyguard. The entertaining semi-spoof, co-starring Ryan Reynolds in a satirical riff on the 1992 Kevin Costner hit The Bodyguard, lives and dies with the droll banter traded effortlessly between the 2 film stars.
The motion comedy lampoon was met with sufficient fanfare and monetary success to warrant a sequel, Hitman’s Spouse’s Bodyguard, which can be obtainable on Netflix for a restricted time. Though the sequel almost sullied the popularity of the unique, The Hitman’s Bodyguard is a wildly amusing tackle the buddy-cop style that provides the nice Samuel L. Jackson a uncommon alternative to flex his comedic performing chops. See it now on Netflix when you nonetheless can.
What Is ‘The Hitman’s Bodyguard’ About?
Directed by Patrick Hughes from a screenplay by Tom O’Connor, The Hitman’s Bodyguard is an underrated buddy motion comedy launched in August 2017. The story facilities on Michael Bryce (Reynolds), a disgraced bodyguard reeling over the ruthless assassination of a high-profile shopper two years prior. Bryce will get a possibility to revive his profession and restore his rep when tasked with defending Darius Kincaid (Jackson), a world-renowned murderer testifying in courtroom in opposition to Belarusian dictator Vladislav Dukhovich (Gary Oldman).
A part of Darius’ testimony settlement in opposition to Dukhovich consists of the discharge of his spouse, Sonia Kincaid (Salma Hayek), from a jail within the Netherlands. In the meantime, Bryce’s ex-girlfriend and main Interpol agent, Amelia Roussel (Elodie Yung), escorts the duo by way of treacherous terrain overseas as Duhkovich’s troopers attempt to cease them with relentless gunfire. An ambush wipes out Kincaid’s safety element, leaving Amelia to recruit Bryce for cover because the trio strikes from The Hague to Amsterdam.
The plot thickens when Kincaid reveals he was accountable for killing Bryce’s shopper two years in the past. The unwitting betrayal units up the comedic dynamic of the film, which leans into the basic, odd couple of cops who argue to no finish earlier than turning into lovable buddies. The bickering, bantering humor is unsurprisingly in Reynolds’ wheelhouse, with Jackson’s hysterical comedic timing being probably the most amusing revelation. Followers of his want to take a look at certainly one of his uncommon comedy performances, particularly whereas it is nonetheless obtainable on Netflix.
How ‘The Hitman’s Bodyguard’ Spoofs Kevin Costner’s ‘The Bodyguard’
For the uninitiated, The Bodyguard is a 1992 romantic motion thriller pairing Kevin Costner with Whitney Houston. Costner performs a former U.S. Secret Service member assigned to guard a budding pop singer performed by Houston. Regardless of being the second-highest-grossing film of 1992, incomes over $411 million worldwide (by way of Field Workplace Mojo), The Bodyguard was met with widespread ridicule from critics for being far too melodramatic, means too critical, and showcasing almost zero romantic chemistry between Costner and Houston.
With out understanding about The Bodyguard‘s absurd deficiencies, it is exhausting to completely respect how successfully The Hitman’s Bodyguard skewers the unique’s tacky clichés. But, proper all the way down to the near-identical poster that includes Ryan Reynolds holding Samuel L. Jackson in his arms like Costner did for Whitney Houston, the goal was clear: take a mega-popular romantic thriller with a detrimental stigma and switch it right into a farcical parody.
The primary try succeeded, incomes $183 million in world ticket gross sales, a 6.9 IMDb score, and a 67% Rotten Tomatoes Popcorn Meter rating. Past the playful chemistry between Jackson and Reynolds, the film is most entertaining when it toys with buddy-cop conventions, poking enjoyable on the style’s overused tropes and lending a sprawling worldwide air of intrigue that transcends a mere parody of The Bodyguard.
Alas, the second try faltered, with Hitman’s Spouse’s Bodyguard grossing $70 million globally and boasting a 6.1 IMDb score and 25% Tomato Meter Rating. Each films will stay on Netflix by way of August 31, 2025. That offers Samuel L. Jackson followers lower than one month to see certainly one of his funniest and most unheralded comedic performances in a legendary profession that features over 200 credit.
The Hitman’s Bodyguard might not reinvent the buddy-cop-action subgenre, but it surely does present Samuel L. Jackson a scarce alternative to flash his comedic aplomb. Ryan Reynolds proves to be the proper comedian foil for Jackson, with followers of each positive to get hearty chuckles and some real stomach laughs earlier than The Hitman’s Bodyguard leaves Netflix after August 31, 2025.