Hey gang, Valkor here. The last time we saw Luke Goss around these
parts, his film "Pressed"
didn't fare all that well and to quote my review "Pressed was
an awesome, suspenseful, dramatic ride… up until those last 35
minutes. After that, it's like watching a wreck – you know you
shouldn't linger, but you can't help but stare". Well Goss
is back in a new film and he's just as edgy as ever in "Interview
with a Hitman", written and directed by Perry Bhandal. And I have
to say… I was pleased with this one.
Interview with a Hitman follows the life of Victor (Goss), a hitman for the Romanian mob, now detailing his life for a documentary filmmaker. He starts with his beginnings as a child growing up in the slums; his father was a gambler owing money to the local mob. When they come to collect, Victor decides to join up with them and quickly gains acceptance. After his first kill, he's moved to Bucharest where he sharpens his skills and rises up in the ranks to become the best there is. Later he's betrayed by those who brought him up and after dispatching then faking his own death, he moves to London where he attempts to start over and even finds new love after saving the life of Bethesda (Caroline Tillette). But before he can settle down, his past quickly catches up with him. And he'll have to face it head on!
Even after the dismal showing of Pressed, I still had high hopes for Goss; I think he has all the makings of a great action star - he just needs the right vehicles to kick things off. And I think he may have found it with Interview with a Hitman.
The Good:
Perry Bhandal, you must be one proud mofo because for your first time outing, you've put together one hell of a film with "Interview with a Hitman"; Not the greatest, but still quite entertaining and compelling with a tightly woven story that's complex yet not too difficult to follow, with a nice twist ending (though predictable) - I enjoyed it from beginning to end. Speaking of beginnings, I love that opening scene – not a word is spoken for the first ten minutes or so; it's quite unsettling but very effective in setting the mood of the film. Moving on to the acting, Luke Goss won me over in "Pressed" and he continues to shine, rocking the shit out of his character Victor, who is a ruthless, cold-blooded killer – he's just consistent throughout. And when he finally breaks down, when it appears he's about to cut ties with his life as a hitman... it got to me just a little. Great job! Finally I wanna talk about that twist ending; I say it's predictable, not in the negative sense – it's still a solid closer, but when you see it you'll know everything you need to know then on. No wait, scratch that, for me, the film could have gone in two directions – either Victor confronts his past or faces his own demise. That might be considered a bit of a spoiler, but trust me when you see it, you'll know what I mean. In the end, Interview with a Hitman is an amazing thriller that I really enjoyed.
The Bad: The film isn't perfect, but there isn't really all that much to say on the negative side. Sure I could nitpick a few things, but I'm gonna refrain this round.
The Ugly:
N/A
Interview with a Hitman isn't available in the U.S. but if you're open to importing, then its available now. I hope it gets picked up soon because I wouldn't want folk to miss out on an amazing film that's dark, gritty, captivating, and oh so entertaining. I highly recommend it! And out of TOV 5 stars, I give Interview with a Hitman 4 stars. Luke Goss, you're my newest, favoritest action hero.
