The Assassin Thriller Flop Getting A Second Chance On Hulu
Just a reminder to anybody trying to make a movie based on a successful video game: you're likely to anger critics. There's a well established record of — aside from a few hit video game movies — critics tearing apart movie adaptations of video games. Although fans are usually displeased as well. Hitman: Agent 47 is based on the successful Hitman video game series and centers around the white-shirted, burgundy tie-clad, genetically engineered agent who must locate Katia van Dees (Hannah Ware) and her father Dr. Litvenko (Ciaran Hinds) to help stop a corporation from making an army of killers like him.
Though the movie, starring Homeland actor Rupert Friend, earned $82 million worldwide on a budget of $35 million, the critics were not fans. The film currently holds an 8% rating from critics on Rotten Tomatoes. Jeannette Catsoulis of The New York Times called the movie "Dumb as dirt and just as generic" and Jordan Hoffman of The Guardian wrote the movie was an "idiotic mess with a bafflingly dense prologue, an endless final battle, lifeless performances and anticlimactic twists." But Hoffman did add that it had a "degree of visual flair."
The film was co-written by Skip Woods, the same writer who penned the previous Hitman film from 2007, which starred Timothy Olyphant. That adaptation also flopped with critics and audiences, earning a 16% critic's rating on Rotten Tomatoes and 57% from audiences. But now Hitman: Agent 47 is getting a second chance on Hulu and might be worth the watch, despite what the critics have said.
Fans are loving Rupert Friend's performance as Agent 47
Though critics may not love the second Hitman film, it doesn't mean fans can't still discover parts of the movie to like. Now that it's streaming on Hulu, many viewers are praising elements of the film, especially Friend's performance. Twitter user @NocTommy wrote they were "wow, I forgot how much this movie rocks and how much i love the Hitman series. Others, like @NickRLC, tweeted that it was a "BRILLIANT portrayal by Rupert Friend." Josh Lasser of IGN even wrote that Friend "makes a surprisingly good 47 here in the new movie." He said the actor landed on the "perfect tone for a character who kills without mercy but still has a few soft spots. Friend doesn't just look the part, he brings it to life."
Another Twitter user, @Paul_Berney, praised Friend as well his co-star, Ware, writing: "I'm watching Hitman: Agent 47. I adore this movie. Pure ballsy action with Rupert Friend delivering the goodies as the legendary video game assassin. And Hannah Ware melting my heart all over the freakin' floor. I loved this movie at the cinema, watched it many times since." Even though critics might have been down on the video game-based film, this latest praise shows that the film might be worth a second chance!