Though containing some great action scenes, I wouldn't really call this an action movie. This is just as much a comedy-drama. The focus of the movie is the relationship between Jet Li and Eric Tsang's characters. This leads to some funny scenes. The comedy is restrained in comparison to some other Hong Kong films. Though not abundant, the action scenes are very good. The fights are brutal and Jet isn't the indestructible guy he usually is. He's just a little better than his opponents in this one. The same goes for Simon Yam who gets to do some ass-whipping in this one. The movie is realistic in this sense. There aren't any superhumans that batter there opponents without any competition.

Hong Kong Legends does a great job with the picture of this DVD. The source print is very good. Extremely little damage and specks in the film. The colors for the most part are very good as are the black levels. There is a scene or two that look a little washed out but not bad at all. There was some very minor combing that happened very infrequently when something moved quickly but i would chalk this up to the PAL to NTSC conversion and not a mastering flaw.

HITMAN opens with the assassination of a very wealthy businessman by somebody who is called The Angel of Death. This Angel of Death kills those who are lawbreakers and are evil at heart. Before the businessman dies, he tells the Angel that he will find no rest because he has a revenge fund that will go to whoever tracks down his killer. Needless to say, the Angel isn't impressed. When news hits the street that there is a large bounty available, Jet Li would like a shot at it. He doesn't know the details but he is dirt poor. He is as an aspiring hitman but with a heart. His problem is that he doesn't feel that his intended targets deserve to die. When he arrives at the meeting for the details of the mission, he is befriended by Eric Tsang, a con artist and swindler who wants to be his agent. The meeting is crashed by the police, headed by Simon Yam. No arrests are made but it gives Simon Yam an opportunity to size up those assembled to try to collect the bounty. The race is then on to get the businessman's killer as well as the person who ordered the hit.

The sound is also done well. This was shot sync sound and Jet Li is doing his own voice. This is notable because he is almost always dubbed by somebody else. Most of the sound comes from the front speakers and it is mixed very well. Some of the gunshots sound a little weak but they aren't distracting. There is a time or two when the dialogue could have been a little louder but overall the soundtrack is very good.

The subtitles are easy to read and there are no misspellings or grammatical errors. They appear long enough to be read and are in sync with what is being said. You don't have to worry about the subtitles if you have a widescreen TV because THE HITMAN is anamorphic.

Hong Kong Legends has put together some great extras for this DVD. There are interviews with Jet Li, Simon Yam and Keiji Sato. There is also a very good written filmography for Jet li. Of, course the trailer is included. It's amazing how much care HKL puts into its titles.

Bottomline, if you like this movie, this is the DVD to get if you have a multi-region player or if you have region 2 equipment. This is also at least worth a rental if not a purchase if you are a Jet Li fan. If you are expecting a straight out action flick, you will be disappointed. This movie's charm comes from the relationship between the characters of Jet Li and Eric Tsang. Simon Yam is also great even though I wish he was in the movie more.