Old Guy has a charming Christoph Waltz chewing up the screen as a hard-partying hit man forced to take an amoral Gen Z psychopath under his wing. The truly odd couple bicker like crazy while a frustrated third wheel just happens to come along for the ride. Old Guy is 100% predictable with no surprises in a standard gangsters-on-the-run plot. That’s not a fatal blow because an infectious lead performance and good ensemble chemistry elevates the written material. You like the characters despite their flaws and root for them to stay breathing.
Age Is Just a Number
Old Guy
2.5
/5
- Release Date
-
February 21, 2025
- Runtime
-
103 minutes
- Director
-
Simon West
- Writers
-
Greg Johnson
- Christoph Waltz charms throughout a hard-partying geezer.
- Lucy Liu and Cooper Hoffman have good ensemble chemistry.
- The generational comedy mostly works.
- Lackluster action disappoints.
- No surprises in a predictable narrative.
Danny Dolinski (Christoph Waltz) boogies down drunk and high out of his mind at a raging rave party. He swings his injured right arm in a cast with reckless abandon. The white-haired, mustached geezer looks out of place among the gyrating, barely dressed young women. Age is just a number for disco Danny as he joyously takes the revelry back to his London apartment to continue the hedonism.
The following day brings a long-awaited doctor’s visit. Danny has his cast removed, but is reminded to take it easy. His arm will have less functionality, and he’ll still have to contend with arthritis. The doctor declines his request for more narcotics. Those were just meant for the surgery. Danny makes a call to his boss. He’s back in the game and ready to work.
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Opal (Ann Akinjirin) has an important job in Belfast for Danny, but there’s a big catch. He has to bring along a killing wunderkind as an apprentice of sorts. Wihlborg (Cooper Hoffman) has shown extraordinary potential but has a bad habit of also murdering innocent bystanders, something that Danny has never done in his sterling 30-year career. An annoyed Danny picks up Anata (Lucy Liu), his best friend and a brothel madame, before getting Wihlborg. She has personal business on the Emerald Isle. The mismatched trio drive Danny’s Jaguar onto the ferry unaware of the poop storm ahead.
Different Generations of (Hit) Men
Old Guy gets moderate chuckles from the generational interplay between Danny and Wihlborg, who doesn’t drink, smoke, or do drugs. He paints his nails and wears a pink wool cap and a multicolored hipster coat like a folk guitarist playing at a trendy coffee shop. The look on Danny’s face as he takes in Wihlborg for the first time may be worth the price of admission by itself. To be fair, Wihlborg also isn’t happy to have this heathen dinosaur as partner. He thinks he’s more than capable alone and doesn’t need an arthritic babysitter.
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Their arrival in Belfast stokes Danny’s worst fear. Could Wihlborg be his replacement? Why is the assassin GOAT (greatest of all time), as the arrogant Danny refers to himself, being put out to pasture after decades of success without collateral damage in a deadly profession? Wihlborg, who calls killing a “craft,” doesn’t appreciate Danny’s unwanted advice or indictment of his ruthless methods. Anyone who gets in his way is viewed as expendable. Danny, who could fill a morgue with his past misdeeds, has his limits and rationalizes that he only murders bad people. The gap between the two widens in the first act as their differing schools of thought affect the job’s outcome. That’s bad news, as both men are unwitting pawns in a bigger game.
Moderate Laughs, Lackluster Action
Liu’s character serves as the narrative’s bridge to humanity. Anata’s thankfully not eye candy or solely the damsel in distress, but a wounded figure tired of criminality. Her reason for going to Belfast has heart and illustrates a depth to her character the others don’t have. Anata complains that hit men rarely actually work. She has to put up with the worst of human vices on a daily basis. Why can’t she have a normal life and be happy? You don’t have to be Nostradamus to see where this subplot goes.
Director Simon West (Con Air, Lara Croft: Tomb Raider, The Expendables 2) is oddly tame given his previous action bonanzas. Old Guy is a much smaller and lower-budget film than his norm, and the lack of butt-kicking action scenes is a big let-down considering his pedigree. The comedy and relationship aspects take center stage over the expected wanton violence. There is gun play throughout the film, but it’s not remarkable and seems like an afterthought. This is especially evident in a ho-hum finale, which feels anti-climactic for a filmmaker known for going over the top.
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It doesn’t help that Danny’s shaky trigger finger seems to magically heal as the plot ambles along. Thankfully, Waltz can do no wrong with his towering screen presence. A lesser actor wouldn’t have been believable as an old-school badass given the lack of establishing action. He’s endearing, fun to watch, and anchors Danny’s bond between Anata and Wihlborg. That warrants a recommendation for breezy, no-frills entertainment. Old Guy is a production of Dark Castle Entertainment, Highland Film Group, and 23ten Productions Ltd. It will be released theatrically on February 21st from The Avenue.
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