The Hitman’s Bodyguard (2017)
Genre: Action comedy
Director: Patrick Hughes
Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Samuel L. Jackson, Gary Oldman, Richard E. Grant, Elodie Yung
Duration: 118 minutes
Class: 15
KRS Releasing Ltd

Without a superhero movie in play, this week provides an opening for two smaller films to shine. But one is beaming brighter than the other.

The title goes to Lionsgate’s R-rated action comedy The Hitman’s Bodyguard, which was released in the US last week and has grossed $27 million worldwide.

That’s a solid opening, especially during a painful summer for the movie business and the sleepy month of August.

The final tally was fuelled by an aggressive marketing push, and a trio of stars at the centre – Samuel L. Jackson as a notorious hitman, Salma Hayek is an equally threatening wife and Ryan Reynolds as a bodyguard.

The film comes courtesy of director Patrick Hughes (The Expendables 3) and writer Tom O’Connor.

The film received mixed reviews, with critics praising Reynolds and Jackson’s chemistry but criticising the cliché plot and execution.

“The Hitman’s Bodyguard is generating great word of mouth among moviegoers,” said Lionsgate’s distribution president David Spitz. “It has a clear runway in the weeks ahead and we expect it to play well right into September.”

Bodyguard Michael Bryce (Reynolds) is hired to protect Kurosawa, a Japanese arms dealer. All apparently goes well, but Kurosawa is shot in the head at the last minute.

Two years later, Bryce has fallen into disgrace and ekes out a living protecting drug-addicted corporate executives. Meanwhile, Vladislav Dukhovich, the ruthless and bloodthirsty dictator of Belarus, is put on trial for crimes against humanity at the International Court of Justice.

The prosecution is unable to make headway against him, as they cannot substantiate their allegations with physical evidence and Dukhovich assassinates any witnesses who could do so.

The prosecution’s last hope is notorious hitman Darius Kincaid (Jackson), who agrees to testify against Dukhovich in exchange for the exoneration of his wife Sonia, who is currently incarcerated.

Ratings
IMDB: 7.3/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 39%
Empire: 2 stars

Ty Burrell strips off to star in a raunchy threesome with Demi Moore and Zoë Kravitz for the racy film Rough Night.

Rough Night (2017)
Genre: Comedy
Director: Lucia Aniello
Starring: Scarlett Johansson, Kate McKinnon, Zoe Kravitz, Jillian Bell, Ilana Glazer, Ryan Cooper, Ty Burrell, Demi Moore
Duration: 101 minutes
Class: 15
KRS Releasing Ltd

In the R-rated comedy Rough Night, five friends from college – played by Scarlett Johansson, Kate McKinnon, Jillian Bell, Ilana Glazer, and Zoë Kravitz – reunite when they rent a beach house in Miami for a wild bachelorette weekend that goes completely off the rails.

Just when all hope is lost, they realise there’s more to the story than they could’ve ever imagined.

In released stills from Rough Night, out this Friday, Kravitz, playing the character of Blair, will see her night take an unexpected turn as she is seduced by a kinky couple, played by Demi Moore and Ty Burrell.

In racy scenes, Blair (Kravitz) enjoys a passionate kiss with Lea (Moore), before the women embark on a threesome with Pietro (Burrell).

The sultry scenes show Pietro and Lea strip down to the buff as they seduce Blair – but the comedy will show that the affair is a rather awkward encounter.

Blair agrees to the ménage à trois in order to obtain security footage, which incriminates her bachelorette party in a serious crime – and the kinky agreement is the only way to help her and her friends out of trouble.

The stills show Blair finds herself in a rather sticky situation, as Lea and Pietro attempt to entice her into the steamy arrangement.

The raunchy comedy will follow Jess (Johansson) as she stars as bride-to-be Jess who meets up with her group of one-time closest friends to mark her last days as a single woman in Miami.

The trailer for the bachelorette comedy promises to tick off all the naughty genre’s boxes.

Ratings
IMDB: 5.4/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 48%
Empire: N/A

Madeline “Maddy” Whittier’s (Amandla Stenberg) life changes for the better when she begins to communicate with the boy next door (Nick Robinson) in Everything, Everything.

Everything, Everything (2017)
Genre: Drama
Director: Stella Meghie
Starring: Amanda Stenberg, Nick Robinson, Anika Noni Rose, Ana de la Reguera, Taylor Hickson, Dan Payne
Duration: 96 minutes
Class: 12A
KRS Releasing Ltd

The opening scene of Everything, Everything shows Madeline “Maddy” Whittier (Amanda Stenberg) sitting in what she considers her favourite room in the house.

It gives her a nice view of the outside, as she enjoys imagining what it would be like to set foot out there, particularly in the ocean.

Maddy, a teen, has severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID), a rare disease that causes her to be allergic to practically everything.

She has spent 17 years hiding out in her home, only seeing her mother (Anika Noni Rose) and her nurse, Carla (Ana de la Reguera).

Her only friends are her nurse Carla and Carla’s daughter Rosa (Danube R. Hermosillo), who are the only other people allowed in the house.

But when a boy named Olly (Nick Robinson) moves in next door, Maddy begins to fall in love.

Ratings
IMDB: 6.3/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 54%
Empire: N/A