The Big Hit
TriStar Pictures | Release Date: April 24, 1998 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
31
METASCORE
Generally unfavorable reviews based on 20 Critic Reviews
Positive:
7
Mixed:
3
Negative:
10
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
75
Boston GlobeJay Carr
The last word in good-time mayhem. Read full review
75
USA TodaySusan Wloszczyna
Far from redundant. That's because (Kirk) Wong deftly balances the outrageous stunts. [24 April 1998, p. 6E]
75
San Francisco ChroniclePeter Stack
Score it big-time inane but a load of fun. Read full review
75
San Francisco ExaminerCraig Marine
One of the funniest movies to come along in awhile. Read full review
70
VarietyLeonard Klady
Unquestionably a slick piece of goods. The training and experience of Wong and his crew --- culled largely from such action series as "La Femme Nikita" and "Once a Thief" --- keep the film lively and vivid. Read full review
70
Dallas ObserverAndy Klein
Manages the seemingly impossible task of being very funny indeed and being as dark as anything Wong has ever made. This is an almost painfully bleak comedy that makes you squirm in the manner of “The Out-of-Towners.” Read full review
63
ReelViewsJames Berardinelli
This movie isn't afraid of venturing into the realm of bad taste -- in fact, it revels in it. Read full review
50
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Rick Groen
This isn't a movie so much as a marketing strategy -- a moving poster loosely disguised as a motion picture. Read full review
50
Chicago ReaderLisa Alspector
The filmmakers seem to think they can also manipulate us by combining the erotic with the disgusting. And they can--it's a foolproof tactic. Read full review
50
New York Daily NewsJami Bernard
Mark Wahlberg could lose some of the good will he generated from his performance in "Boogie Nights" by playing an idiotically gentle killer for hire in The Big Hit. [24 April 1998, p. 53]
30
L.A. WeeklyManohla Dargis
The television commercials for the movie say something about this being the same team that brought you “Face/Off,” which is about as relevant to this picture as noting that Paul Thomas Anderson got Wahlberg to drop his pants in “Boogie Nights.” Read full review
30
Los Angeles TimesJack Mathews
That rarest of all genre hybrids, the screwball-romantic-action-situation-black comedy. Rare for good reason. Who'd want to see a thing like that? Read full review
30
The New York TimesLawrence Van Gelder
A high-concept, low-reward hodgepodge that mingles elaborate stunts and shootouts with stereotypical ethnic humor. Read full review
25
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
The characters in these movies exist in a Twilight Zone where thousands of rounds of ammunition are fired, but no one ever gets shot unless the plot requires him to. Read full review
25
Entertainment WeeklyDavid Everitt
It's tempting to brand the film anti-Semitic, but it's so utterly pointless it lacks even that distinction. Read full review
20
The A.V. ClubNathan Rabin
The Big Hit goes beyond the call of duty in terms of hateful, crass exploitation. Read full review
20
TV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonagh
The hyperactive Hong Kong action stuff is getting old. Read full review
20
Film ThreatRich Nesbitt
A confused mess. Read full review
10
Washington PostStephen Hunter
Though R-rated, its real target audience is under 18 -- either in years or IQ points. Read full review
0
Austin ChronicleMarc Savlov
For masochists only, and hardcore ones at that. Read full review
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