Accident Man: Hitman’s Holiday, 2022.
Directed by the Kirby Brothers.
Starring Scott Adkins, Ray Stevenson, Perry Benson, Sarah Chang, George Fouracres, Flaminia Cinque, Andreas Nguyen and Beau Fowler.
SYNOPSIS:
The Accident Man, is back and this time he must beat the top assassins in the world, to protect the ungrateful son of a mafia boss, save the life of his only friend and rekindle his relationship with his maniacal father figure.
A few years back in 2018, the Jesse Johnson and Scott Adkins express train hit full speed with Adkins’ long-term passion project, Accident Man. Based on an obscure British comic, the concept was simple; Mike Fallon makes his living killing people, usually masking his hits to look like accidents. Alongside writer Stu Small, Adkins found himself a role perfectly suited to showcase his martial arts ability, but also a gift for comedy few had previously given him credit (or the platform) for.
Accident Man didn’t hit the wave it deserved for both Johnson and (particularly) Adkins, in what was a really enjoyably anarchic action film filled with fights and one-liners. It was everything action aficionados should want in the undemanding world of straight-to-video action cinema, that all too few deliver with such aplomb these days. Johnson and Adkins would thankfully get more notice for Avengement which followed soon after.
Step forward to 2022 and Adkins is having another stab at Fallon and his world of accident-laying subterfuge. No Johnson this time, but the mantle has been taken up by the Kirby Brothers (George and Harry) to helm this action film (with Small scripting again). Here, Adkins takes Fallon overseas to one of the DTV world’s current in-vogue filming locations, Malta. Sensibly they set it in Malta too. It is a glossy, dazzling Mediterranean location that immediately differentiates the film from the grimy London locales of the first.
Fallon is on a break, still plagued by regret and guilt over the outcome of his previous adventures. He’s cast off from his previous employers and cohorts but soon finds that Malta is rife with job offers for his particular set of skills. Soon he encounters Finicky Fred, his old buddy (a returning Perry Benson), and the pair form an amiable partnership. This is all whilst Fallon tests his skills with the help of his own personal Kato, the slightly crazy Wong Siu-Ling (Sarah Chang), tasked with attacking him at random.
Accident Man: Hitman’s Holiday, like the first but with even more assurance, sets its stall out from the off. Everything is a notch up from the first (though the first has more emotional resonance). There are quirkier characters, humor, irreverence, and fights with the kind of gleeful comedic tone of old-school Jackie Chan. They make great use of each setting, which quickly becomes a part of the choreography, whether it’s Adkins being repeatedly thrown through his own glass tables, or seeing his workshop (complete with a mock kitchen set for ‘tests’) getting trashed as he fights a killer clown within it. It fires out gags and one-liners with more regularity, it’s sillier, but it’s also even more fun.
Soon Fallon has attracted the ire of his old boss (Ray Stevenson), and caught the eye of a local crime Lady (Flaminia Cinque). He’s given a simple job, to protect her feckless and useless son (George Fouracres) who is being hunted by the most elite assassins in the land. Thankfully the tagalong element benefits the film and the inherent comedy that comes with it (somewhat reminiscent of Nick Cage and Pedro Pascal’s recent double team in Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent).
This might be light on plot, but there’s something to be said for having something simple, done extremely well. It doesn’t get bogged down with subplots. It’s lean, and tight, and keeps you entertained from start to finish. Adkins’ recent active push to take more control of his output is certainly paying off. He’s always been fairly consistent with a decent ‘good to dud’ ratio that honestly, very few of his contemporaries come close to matching.
Importantly though, whilst Adkins continues to consistently deliver some of the best fights in the action wheelhouse (outside of Asia), he’s also continuing to push his talents as a performer. This isn’t the emotional deep dive required from something like Avengement, or the psychological intensity of Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning, but he has pathos when needed, loads of charm, and shows himself not only adept with the one-liners (once again) but the physical comedy. It’s really another reminder that Adkins deserves a jump to a wide theatrical leading role.
Elsewhere, the cast is in fine fettle. Everyone’s having fun. The chemistry between Adkins and Benson as an unlikely double act works very well. Stevenson enters and is atypically decent. Beau Fowler is a wild addition as Poco the Killer Clown (who is unable to feel pain). There is, however, someone that outshines them all though. Sarah Chang is magnificent in her riff on Kato (from the Pink Panther). It begins as a gag but she’s quickly given elaboration and continual (and welcome) screen time.
Chang is wild, and a brilliant physical performer in the array of action sequences she has (including several comedic duels with Adkins) but importantly she’s likable and funny. This is her first major role and will hopefully prove to be a breakout one. At the very least, she will hopefully be a returnee in the (hopefully) inevitable third Accident Man.
Loaded with great lines, excellent fights, and a sense of anarchic fun, Accident Man: Hitman’s Holiday nails its simple premise to deliver a stellar 90 minutes of entertainment. Switch off from the troubles of the world, enjoy yourself and watch something with the silly spirit of Jackie Chan’s City Hunter.
Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★ ★ ★ / Movie: ★ ★ ★ ★
Tom Jolliffe is an award winning screenwriter and passionate cinephile. He has a number of films out on DVD/VOD around the world and several releases due out in 2022/2023, including, Renegades (Lee Majors, Danny Trejo, Michael Pare, Tiny Lister, Nick Moran, Patsy Kensit, Ian Ogilvy and Billy Murray), Crackdown, When Darkness Falls and War of The Worlds: The Attack (Vincent Regan). Find more info at the best personal site you’ll ever see here.
