Hitmen are a staple of many action films. A ruthless killer for money that usually has no alliances or allies. In many films these murderous mercenaries work for the mob in others they are strictly freelancers who will take on any job for any employer.
In honor of the upcoming DVD release of the film, Bangkok Dangerous, we decided to look at some of our favorite portrayals of Hitmen in film. In Bangkok Dangerous, Nicholas Cage plays Joe, a hitman headed to Thailand to kill four enemies of a local crime boss. While in Bangkok he finds himself falling for a local woman as the crime boss begins to clean house.
CraveOnline presents, The Best Movie Hitmen.
Ah Jong in The Killer
John Woo’s 1989 hitman action drama, The Killer is one of the most copied action films from one of the best action directors to come out of Hong Kong. The film centers on a professional hitman, Ah-Jong (Chow Yun-Fat) at the end of his career. During a job, the hitman accidentally injures a nightclub singer and begins to help her with her recovery and take part in one last hit to raise money for an operation for her. The film’s climax is a barrage of blood, bullets and doves (remember it’s a John Woo movie).
Ah-Jong is an ice cold killer who always sticks to his principles but has more heart than anyone in his profession should.
Leon in The Professional
Luc Besson‘s The Professional (aka Leon the Professional) is a very different kind of action drama. The Professional tells the story of Leon, a hitman (Jean Reno) and loner who reluctantly becomes a mentor to a young girl (Natalie Portman) who has just lost her entire family to corrupt DEA agents. The film centers on the growing relationship between the girl (Mathilda) and Leon and her learning the trade. The film has a climax that brings the killers of Mathilda’s family in to the crosshairs of her mentor.
Leon is a quiet killer who has no relationships other than with his employer, until he meets Mathilda.
Michael Mann's 2004 film Collateral features a very straight forward hitman named Vincent (Tom Cruise) who uses a cab driver (Jamie Foxx) to take him to his targets. An expert with firearms as well as hand to hand combat; Vincent is emotionally detached, intelligent and ruthless. Vincent comes to Los Angeles to kill five witness for a crime boss awaiting a federal trial. During the course of the night Vincent kills all but one of his targets before he comes face to face with the cab driver, Max.
Vincent is a mysterious hitman, seemingly with no past, no identity and a future consisting only of the next assignment.
Michael Sullivan, Sr. in Road to Perdition
Road to Perdition tells the story of a prohibition era hitman, Michael Sullivan (Tom Hanks). Growing up as an orphan and taken in by a mob boss, Sullivan becomes the enforcer and hitman to the head of an Irish mob boss in Illinois. After his son becomes a witness to one of his murders, Sullivan finds himself and family targets of a mobster (Connor) looking to conceal his crimes against their boss, John Rooney (Paul Newman). On the run, the Sullivan's eventually meet up with an out of town assassin in Perdition, Kansas.
Michael Sullivan is quiet but deadly and different from most hitmen in films, in that he has a family and a social life.
Golgo 13 in Golgo 13: Kowloon Assignment
Japanese action icon and martial artist, Sonny Chiba plays the title character Golgo 13 (aka Duke togo) an international hitman. Golgo 13 is based on a popular manga character from the late 60's, created by Takao Saito. The character has been adapted in to two live action films, two animated films, three video games and most recently a new animated series that modernizes the 40 year old character. The Kowloon Assignment is the hard to find live action Golgo 13 film. The film follows the hitman on an assignment in Hong Kong to kill a mob boss and moves to Tokyo, Kyoto and Macao as Golgo races to complete his assignment.
Golgo 13 is a relentless assassin who will scour the earth to find his target.
