Wild Target (2010) Reviews

• An interesting and entertaining comedy.

  danielkratky2010-06-20

  I thoroughly enjoyed this film and found the story to be original and funny throughout. Emily Blunt plays an extremely sexy con-artist who crosses paths with an up-tight Bill Nighy playing a professional assassin hired to kill her. The characters are likable and well-cast. Bill Nighy and Emily Blunt strike up a modern day love-story that is unconventional and yet somehow totally believable. The family bond that is established with Rupert Grint as the adopted son worked very well and was charming. If you want to see something different, interesting and funny then I really recommend giving this film a chance.

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• An understated British comedy

  Harry_Keane2010-06-29

  I thoroughly enjoyed this film and thought it was very entertaining. True, there were only a few laugh-out-loud moments, but it kept me chuckling away for most of the 90-odd minutes. I thought Bill Nighy's performance was spot-on and Eileen Atkins' role gave her plenty of scope for comedy moments. Rupert Everett and Gregor Fisher worked well together, and Martin Freeman was very good as Dixon. Although the plot was simple, the film was reminiscent of a lot of British comedies from the Sixties and Seventies, which was probably why I enjoyed it so much. It was also good to see something that wasn't shot in America and didn't follow the stereotypical plot lines that most American films seem to have as a matter of course.

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• Brilliantly Funny

  soffe123452010-06-20

  Well, in contrast to the first review, i felt that this was a hilariously funny attribute to the British film industry. With continuous amusing modern slap stick humour throughout. I had been looking forward to the release of this film for a while, and it was far better than i had ever expected. The cinema was packed and everyone was laughing throughout the entire film, which in my experience is very rare. There is an incredible cast containing many well known British actors/ actresses, overall a must see film. Looking forward to the DVD release. Thank you. x

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• Top Quality!

  stueey2010-06-20

  If your taste is really obvious commercial and/or big budget comedies then this might not be for you but if you have a soft spot for classic British comedies that are a bit quirky, don't try to hard then this should definitely be up your street. It has an excellent cast that all play their characters perfectly although very typically. Rupert Everett is predictably his usual self as is Bill Nighy but both quite excellently so. I've seen a couple of negative reviews of this movie but it needs to be emphasised that it's not a mass market comedy. The story is great and the timing of some of the jokes is absolutely perfect. This is actually one of the few films I'd like to own a copy of when it's released.

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• Quirky, smart and typically Nighy

  GrowMagicBeans2010-06-22

  I ended up seeing this title in one of those frustrating moments where my main choice of feature was either on at the wrong time, had not even been released yet or my friends just flatly did not want to see the same things as I, and so we ended up going to Wild Target as an inoffensive compromise. I was expecting it to be real cheesy and void of humour, especially after having seen the trailer. I was pleasantly surprised! Okay, when one goes to the cinema with such low expectations, they can only but move in one direction, but nevertheless I have to commend the movie on several points. I thought all the one-liners would have been used up in the trailer (and those that I had seen had seemed tacky at best) but I guess the movie isn't about one-liners. Rather then relying on half cocked jokes, it pulls itself onto its own two feet using situational comedy, which gives it a real British flavour. I heard it compared to the humour of the old Earling Studio movies, which seems like a nice comparison. Actually, on doing a little research, I found that the original story came from a French movie (Cible émouvante, 1993). It's easy to tell from the zany characters, offbeat humour and introspective look on life that it was originally French in theme, but as a story it translates nicely onto a typically British backdrop. Basically Victor Maynard, a cold hearted hit-man played by Bill Nighy (great performance as always - he's legend!) is a middle aged unmarried killing professional who is beginning to loose his touch. This becomes no more obvious when he fails to make a hit on the sensually beautiful Rose (Emily Blunt). Things start to get complicated for Victor when he finds, not only has he lost the killer instinct, but he also starts protecting her from the men sent to finish the job. I'm not sure about the Rupert Grint character of Tony. He seems the most out of place in my opinion. I suppose Tony was added to feed in a further dynamic between Victor and Rose and their growing relationship, but for me, this relationship triangle was either not developed fully or just failed outright. Maybe it held more credence in the original French story, but in the English version at least, Tony really does feel like the spare tire as his presence seems unnecessary and the character's attributes hammy. By far the weakest link the movie. Quirky and light hearted; it may only be a lighter shade of grey rather then a full blown black comedy (12A Cert in Ireland), but still a pleasant surprise if you come to stumble upon it.

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