Blu-ray Review: Hit Man (1972)

Synopsis: ​Tyrone Tackett's brother wasn't the kind of man to throw his life away. Somebody killed him, plain and simple. And by the time Tyrone crisscrosses L.A. and pieces together the crime, lots of folks are going to pay. With equal amounts of tough and sexy, Bernie Casey portrays Tyrone and Pam Grier plays a sultry skin-flick star in this first Americanized remake of the iconic Michael Caine action film Get Carter. From Watts to the West Side, from porno parlors to a high-rise, from motel dives to a crime kingpin's sprawling pleasure dome, from corner hangouts to a wildlife preserve, Tyrone covers a lot of real estate, busts a lot of heads. And throughout, star Casey "keeps enough cool for a half a dozen movie heroes" (Roger Greenspun, The New York Times).

Main Features: Hit Man is a strange cat. It's got the obvious Blaxploitation outrageousness but also a grounded, mainstream story of appeal. In the end, it was a fun watch. It's not an overly new story--even from 1972--but with that grindhouse extreme. Sure, it's that genre's version of Get Carter (basically a step-by-step version of it, actually), but it has fun in it's own way. Pam Grier is always a delight, and Bernie Casey is an admirable lead.

Bonus Features: Only a trailer for the film in SD. Never expect much from the Warner Bros. manufacturing on demand titles.

Final Call: Hit Man targets a certain wavelength in it's mix of mainstream and blaxplotation to mostly fun effect.

Grade: B-