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Running with the Hitman (TV) aka Zeyda and the Hitman
R1 - America - Echo Bridge Entertainment Review written by and copyright: Pat Pilon (16th October 2006). |
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The Film
 A gangster (who grew up in the rough and tumble city of 1940s Winnipeg!) tells a story of a guy who wants to get rid of his idiot son-in-law. Judd Hirsch plays the guy who wants to kill his son-in-law and he plays the same character he plays in a bunch of other movies. Danny Aiello plays the, well, gangster, and he's also the same as in a bunch of other movies, though this time he has a comedic side. The two have nice chemistry together and make the movie enjoyable. Legal mistakes aside, some scenes are quite amusing. The little sequence where Judd Hirsch thinks up of ways to kill his son-in-law and the execution of his plans, I found quite amusing. I found the second half definitely better than the first. The comedy bits are funny, but some are pretty obvious. It's enjoyable, though a bit long at times. Danny Aiello and Judd Hirsch do a very nice job, and give the movie a certain charm. The supporting cast, don't do much, though, but that's because it's not their story. The director does a good job of keeping things playful and somewhat light. All around, it's a nice TV movie. Produced by Canada's CTV, the movie is fun for the time it runs, but probably easily forgettable. It's not a deep story, or a particularly touching one, but it has a message and gives that message pretty well. It's enjoyable, nothing more.
Video
1.33:1 full screen. The picture, unfortunately, isn't so good. It's fine, though, and looks okay on a tube TV, but on bigger sets, the detail is lost. The compression is okay and the colours are faithfully reproduced, but without a good source, the print here is just not amazing. It's fine for what it is, but nothing more.
Audio
The only audio track is a Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo track in English. It's a nice track. Given the movie isn't too sound-heavy, the sound isn't so dynamic. However, the dialogue is clear, and that’s what's important. The music in one scene does drown the words out, but what's being said in that scene isn't really important. The music, though, is well mixed with the sound effects and dialogue for the most part. You get to hear what you should hear, and given it's a TV movie, the sound is good.
Extras
The only thing resembling extras are some startup trailers for 'Absolute Zero' (1:20), 'The Big White' (0:40) and 'Where There’s a Will' (1:20), which can't even be accessed in the menu screens.
Overall
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