It's A Rough Job..."The Hitman's Bodyguard"

The Hitman's Bodyguard (2017)

Rated R

Starring Ryan Reynolds, Samuel L. Jackson, Salma Hayek, Elodie Yung, Gary Oldman,

Directed by Patrick Hughes

The Story:

Michael Bryce (Reynolds) used to be the best Triple A rated bodyguard in the business. After a disaster he couldn't have seen coming, he's now striving to keep himself employed and working to get back to the top. Hired to escort international assassin Darius Kincaid (Jackson) to testify in court to put a war criminal (Oldman) behind bars, the two have to survive countless assassination attempts and each other if they hope to make it out of the situation alive.

If you saw the trailer and thought it looked like a silly, fun action flick, well you were right.

Ryan Reynolds is back to doing his usual routine of playing himself/Van Wilder/Wade Wilson.

It's worked for his entire career in most movies, so why stop now?

Paired with Samuel L. Jackson, the two get to enjoy the camaraderie that comes in the usual buddy comedy/mismatched dynamic duo genre and all the trappings and cliches that entails.

I happen to looooove that genre, so I'm a fan.

Fun film that with a few tweaks along the way could have been even better than it was.

Your mileage of course can vary.

Final Grade: B-

The Universe Expands..."Daredevil: Season 2"

Daredevil: Season 2 (2016)

TV-MA

Starring Charlie Cox, Deborah Ann Woll, Elden Henson, Royce Johnson, Jon Bernthal, Elodie Yung, Scott Glenn

Created by Drew Goddard

The Story:

With Wilson Fisk (D'Onofrio) behind bars, you would think life in Hell's Kitchen would slow down. However, there's a new crazy in town, killing bad guys and making a name for himself as The Punisher (Bernthal). Matt (Cox) will have to suit up as Daredevil to try and bring him down before the entire city is bathed in blood. If that wasn't going to be difficult enough, there's another blast from Matt's past just around the corner as Elektra (Yung) comes calling.

Another solid season in the books for Netflix and Marvel.

While there is still some pacing issues that feel like 8-10 solid episodes drag out to 12, it's a bit better this go-round.

I'd even go so far as to say the first 4 episodes are must-see, dynamic storytelling at its finest.

There is a beginning, middle and end to the story that flows just like a perfect comic book story arc.

The problem, once Elektra arrives on the scene, I began to lose interest.

Truth be told, I was never really a fan, and I think I mentioned before that I've never truly cared for Daredevil.

The focus in the storyline shifts, and takes away from the entire Punisher storyline.

I was greatly disappointed that the trial, which could have been 4 riveting episodes on their own felt rushed and shortchanged.

Foggy (Henson) is being criminally underused in the series when he is the glue that holds the show together.

They could have easily worked the trial for 4 episodes, and then put the final 4 episodes on Castle in prison doing what he needs to do to survive and get close to Fisk.

Then you end the season by getting Frank out of jail which leaves the rest of the Elektra story for season 3, and continue Frank's tale in his own series, which thankfully is going to happen.

I'm still not the biggest fan of Karen Page (Woll) but making her a journalist is a great change of pace and one that shakes up the dynamic.

Much like Jessica Jones, I'm really more interested in the supporting cast than the main character.

Because when you pull back from the show and judge it from a distance, Matt Murdock is possibly the biggest jerk in the Marvel Universe right now.

He does what he wants, when he wants to, consequences and friendships be damned.

Plus, I'm willing to suspend belief on what Daredevil can do.

But when he becomes the ultimate super-ninja of all time...

Yeah, I hated that in the comics and it drives me batty on this show as well.

So critical of a show I can't wait to see Season 3 from, right?

:)

Final Grade: A-