Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		4.5
Overall		4.0

Hitman Blu-ray Movie Review

Hitman is an enormously entertaining action-adventure. Produced by Gordon Chan (She Starts the Fire, The Vineyard), Hitman is an impressive showcase for the filmmakers. Starring Jet Li, Eric Tsang, Simon Yam, Gigi Leung, Timmy Ho, Kwong-Kim Yip, John Ching, Keiji Sato, Hideri Meiken, and Kenji Sahara, Hitman is a 90s action classic.  

Fu (Jet Li) and Ngok Lo (Eric Tsang) form an unlikely team. Fu is a novice hitman still learning the ways of a hitman. Officer Chan Kwan (Simon Yam) is laidback with an attitude and sense of suave cool about the entire process – in particular his role in it. Fu and Ngok team up to take on their next assignments – with something especially huge on the horizon.

The bounty for the “King of Killers” is an enormous $100 million. Both of the hitmen would like a piece of the grand prize. Can Fu and Ngok collect on the enormous bounty by stopping the King of Killers?

Jet Li is incredible in the leading role. The performance is one of the best given by Li. There is a lot of cool charisma and emotional gravitas within the performance. Eric Tsang is similarly fantastic in his role. Tsang is a scene-stealer and manages to provide the film with his fantastic energy.

The supporting cast of characters includes Kiki (Gigi Leung), David Wu (Timmy Ho), Martin (Kwong-Kim Yip), Kau (John Ching), Eiji Tsukamoto (Keiji Sato), Sasaki (Hideri Meiken), and Mr. Tsukamoto (Kenji Sahara). The supporting cast does great work. The supporting actors enjoy their roles and bring something special to the table.

The production features noteworthy art direction by Bill Lui (Black Mask, Crime Story). The art direction is top- notch. The production design has outstanding features and there are wonderful aspects to the designs – the set designs making a great impression in particular.

The costume designs by Shirley Chan (Kung Fu Hustle, From Beijing with Love) are fantastic. The costumes are some of the best highlighted in 90s action cinema. The hitman attire is excellent – showcasing the actors well. A superb effort by Chan.

The action direction by Siu-Wah Chan (Black Mask, Kung Fu Hustle), Huen-Chiu Ku (Monster Hunt, Shadow), Chi Wah Ling (Man of Tai Chi, 14 Blades), Wei Tung (Hero, Double World), and Jack Wai-Leung Wong (Wolf Warrior 2, Cesium Fallout) is well-done. The action scenes are enormously impressive and the film builds to a compelling finale with many impressive action beats – the visuals outstanding and memorable.

Composed by Jussi Tegelman (Follow the Prophet, High Risk), Hitman is a fun score. The music plays an impressive role in the film. Tegelman created a fantastic score and it is one that adds to the dramatic scenes as much as the action beats.

The cinematography by Arthur Wong (The Medallion, The Adventurers) is one of the most impressive highlights of Hitman. Wong created incredible visuals as cinematographer. Hitman is all the better as a result. Hitman is a beautiful looking action film and is something to cherish. The photography creates a compelling aesthetic.

Edited by Ka-Fai Cheung (Ip Man, Monster Hunt), Hitman is well-paced. The editing style is fast-paced fun. There is a great vision in the editing style and it builds to the finale.

Written by Hing-Ka Chan (A Better Tomorrow, The Mermaid), Kam Fu Cheng (Top Squad), Vincent Kok (From Beijing with Love, Love on Delivery), Hitman has a great script. The screenplay works so well in part because of the dialogue. The characters have great dialogue exchanges and the interplay adds excellent comedic moments alongside dramatic characterizations.

Directed by Wei Tung (Fox Hunter, Extreme Challenge), Hitman is enormously fun. Hitman is a perfect weekend afternoon watch – the kind of action film to sit-back and enjoy. The directing is impressive, well-stylized, and fun. Hitman is a must-see for Jet Li fans.

Hitman Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Released on Blu-ray by Shout Factory, Hitman is presented in 1080p MPEG-4 AVC encoded high-definition in the original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.85:1 widescreen. The presentation is quite impressive overall. The transfer looks nicely filmic and the high-definition visuals look superb. Color reproduction is also excellent on the release. The amount of fine detail on the presentation is excellent.

There is one scene around the 22-minute mark where the scene becomes out of focus and appears to be from standard-definition source material. The rest of the presentation is much better and highlights good high-definition video and clarity The one scene comes from a lower-resolution source. This is unfortunate and a noteworthy drawback but the rest of the transfer looks far more impressive.

Hitman Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The release includes a selection of lossless audio options: Cantonese DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround sound, Cantonese DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 (with English subtitles), English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0, and Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 (with English subtitles). The lossless audio sounds excellent overall. The surround sound option is a bit too artificial sounding to my tastes.

The Cantonese DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 audio sounds much better. The sound presentation is crisp and well detailed. The English subtitles are free from egregious spelling or grammatical errors.

Hitman Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Audio Commentary With Frank Djeng Of The New York Asian Film Festival

Audio Commentary With Film Critic James Mudge

Hitting it Big – Veteran Hong Kong Film Critic Ricky Baker On The Career Of Jet Li (HD, 9:45)

Interview With Actor Jet Li (SD, 11:03)

Interview With Actor Simon Yam (SD, 8:09)

Interview With Actor Keiji Sato (SD, 13:54)

Behind-the-Scenes Footage (SD, 14:27)

Footage From The Film's Premiere (SD, 11:54)

Trailers (SD, 7:57)

Image Gallery (HD, 2:21)

Hitman Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Hitman is a fantastic action classic. The filmmaking is top-notch throughout the feature. Jet Li and Eric Tsang are both incredible in their leading roles. The action scenes are spectacular and the comedy impresses, too.

The Blu-ray release provides an excellent high-definition presentation and lossless audio. The release also comes with an impressive selection of supplemental materials. Highly recommended.