Diary of a Hitman

1991 "Nothing personal. Just business."
5.2| 1h30m| R| en| More Info
Released: 20 November 1991 Released
Producted By: Vision International
Country: United States of America
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
Official Website:
Synopsis

A veteran hitman, Dekker is ready to call it quits and leave the profession. His final job, however, proves to be trickier than expected when a sadistic man recruits the assassin to kill his wife, Jain, and their baby, but he can’t bring himself to do the job, complicating all of their lives.

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Reviews

Titreenp SERIOUSLY. This is what the crap Hollywood still puts out?
Btexxamar I like Black Panther, but I didn't like this movie.
Teringer An Exercise In Nonsense
Lidia Draper Great example of an old-fashioned, pure-at-heart escapist event movie that doesn't pretend to be anything that it's not and has boat loads of fun being its own ludicrous self.
Spikeopath Diary of a Hit-man is directed by Roy London and adapted to screenplay by Kenneth Pressman from his own play, Insider's Price. It stars Forest Whitaker, John Bedford-Lloyd, Sherilyn Fenn, Seymour Cassel, James Belushi and Sharon Stone.Music is by Michel Colombier and cinematography by Yuri Sokol.Hit-man Dekker is contracted to kill the wife and baby of his latest client, but he starts to seriously question the ethics of the job..."you're your own worst witness"The ingredients for a high end neo-noir piece are all in place here, with the pic at times threatening potency to strike a telling blow, sadly it rounds out as very unfulfilling. Its stage origins are all too obvious, and the blend of quirky and wry humour with the more dramatic core of the story never sits well. Cast also come off as a little awkward, no doubt straining to deliver the goods for their acting coach director.On the plus side for noir fans there's stuff to savour. Pic is driven by a Dekker narration, and the character is in contact with interesting characters. Be it a mime artist, his psychiatrist, a kid in a tumble dryer, a busy body tarty sister or the weasel villain who hires him, the human contact is straight out of noir land. The places he goes are also in keeping, the local bar with neon lighting, the church where "business" is conducted, Jain's (Fenn) apartment, which is a bizarre concoction of scatterbrain living and mummy housewifery, or a peekaboo strip joint. Elsewhere there's an extended session of film where Dekker has double vision, this putting a nice off-kilter vibe on things, while the whole time where the pic takes place in the apartment - with just Dekker and Jain in conflab - holds considerable interest. But then there's the finale, which is so far removed from noir it may make some want to set fire to the TV...Just above average neo-noir, but not one to recommend with any sort of confidence. 6/10
Bob_Zerunkel 120 minutes of scenes that would be cut if they had a plot.Basically, there is a shadowy hit-man who likes to talk to everybody. He tells his story everywhere he goes.Talk, talk, talk.He even talks to the cops. What a nice talkative hit-man. Oh, boy.Luckily, even though half the city knows he is a hit-man, he can still pull off these hits without anybody catching on. Even when the cops catch him in the middle of a hit and know that he is a hit-man, nobody catches on. What a sneaky guy.I assume that the reason why they turned the original turkey of a play into this turkey of a movie was so the characters could be heard over the endless chants of "What kind of crap is this?" Love Whitaker. Hate everything about this movie.
Steve Skafte "Diary of a Hit-man" is something more than the average entry into the neo-noir genre of many such films produced in the 80s/90s. They usually hold a similar trashy appeal, more style than substance, and not too much in the way of quality performances. Forest Whitaker helps to make this an exception from the mold. Here, playing a variant of his later role in "Ghost Dog", he lets you into the mind of a conflicted, controlling, somewhat neurotic hit-man.This film was adapted from a play by Kenneth Pressman, and the middle act pays testament to that. A series of scenes in a small apartment capture a real depth of emotion, both from Whitaker and his target (played by Sherilyn Fenn). It seems almost claustrophobic, but there's a power to it. Roy London doesn't show a lot of experience in his direction, but he does express a good deal of humanity. This is a grounded film, personal. There's no cheap exploitation feel, nor is there any sense of big budget Hollywood.The acting is the real reason to watch "Diary of a Hit-man". Even the small roles have something to offer. I particularly liked the two doctors, one a psychiatrist (John Bedford Lloyd), the other an optometrist (Ken Lerner). James Belushi and Sharon Stone show up briefly, but aren't given a whole lot to do. This isn't an overly complicated or particularly far-reaching film, but the narration lets you under its skin, and there's no terrible overacting or delusions of grandeur. The title might seem cheap, but "Diary of a Hit-man" has a lot more to offer.
K-Ci Diary of Hit Man is an insightful movie that goes into the mine of a hit man. This film is very emotional and suspenseful. The acting is great and very real. Forest Whitaker and Sherilyn Fenn gave great performances. This film is also unpredictable, I found it really exciting to watch. The ending is a good one, because it leaves you wondering, what will happen to the characters? Overall, this is a very well done movie!