MovieChat Forums > Hitman: Agent 47 (2015) Discussion > 47 as an antagonist

47 as an antagonist

posted 9 years ago by alexdelliott
12 replies | jump to latest

Do you think it would work to make a hitman movie where 47 was the antagonist? One major problem with making a hitman film is that they are trying to make a relatable character out of a killing machine who shows no emotion. As a fan of the video games I think it would be a fun suspense film to see everything from a different point of view and watch the paranoia set in as we know 47 could be anywhere. 47 would still have a lot of screen time but the film wouldn't have to go to lengths to make him likeable by turning him into an action hero and the film could focus more on his work than on the man himself. I don't really see any other way of taking this video game character and creating a film which is loyal to the source material whilst being a good film in its own right. I also think it would be an interesting twist on Hitman

[–] DBLurker 9 years ago

That would actually work better than the moronic video game (Absolution) and the movies trying to turn him into a protagonist.

He's a villain. He kills people and he's good at it.

Instead of embracing it, the idiots in charge (from developers of the game to the movie studios) are busy trying to turn him into a good guy. Idiots.

[–] alexdelliott 9 years ago

I'm glad someone agrees. The character is someone who kills people for money - he isn't supposed to be sympathetic. Hopefully the next time they try to make Hitman a movie they actually make the effort to understand the character

[–] JamesBondOO7 9 years ago

Agent 47 isn't a villain he's a antihero. Absolution showed a more sempitehtic side to him and people get all pissed off about "it's not in his character" but yet has anyone played Hitman 2: Silent Assassin at all? The entire game has Agent 47 attempting to save a preist and his friend after he was kidnapped. 47 agrees to go back into the business in exchange for Intel to how to save his friend. 47 does what he is paid to do and states multiple times in the video games when he kills a target that it's simply just because he's paid to do so. Doesn't mean he doesn't have a heart of some kind. After the events of Codename 47 (the first game) he wanted to start life over and be a ordanary person like everyone else but his past comes back to him. After the events of Silent Assassin he realized he won't be able to escape his past life and anyone he comes close too would only be in danger. The fact of it is that 47 isn't capable for caring about anyone it's just he chooses not too in his line of work which the movies get completely wrong saying how he's "programmed" to be a killing machine. Agent 47 is just a clone but he has humanity like the rest of us except he doesn't value the life of his targets.

Yes Absoultion made him more protagonist like but wasn't completly out of character for him. It make sense he cares about Diana. Remember Diana is the person he has communicated most with in his life and Diana saved his life in Blood Money. 47 may be a cold blooded killer but to say he doesn't care about someone is complely false as the games showed he has in the past even before Absolution. The games he was never "programmed" he was created and trained which he turned him into someone else entirely.

[–] DBLurker 9 years ago

You DO know that the game is called "HITMAN", right? Hitmen aren't anti-hero's, neither is 47.

Absolution went full retard trying to make 47 a anti-hero, and they failed at it.

[–] 9 years ago

[deleted]

[–] Contrefaire 9 years ago

Hitmen aren't anti-heroes, but they made Codename 47 an anti-hero, Big difference.
The name of the game isn't relevant, as in any movie or game the title only gives partial information and might just allude to something in the movie/game.

If you are about to make a movie about Codename 47, it would be rather boring if the title dictated the movie. Or if it turned out to be a total balls out action, explosion and big gun fest like in the movies.

Time is all we have

[–] MxSChizo 8 years ago

An anti-hero is a villain portraying as a hero (the charismatic but secretly evil prince who usurps the throne and throws down tyranny, the dictator who portrays himself as the messiah of the people, etc)

An anti-villain is a villain-like character, who in the story plays the heroic role, but as an archetype is too immoral to be considered a hero. Marvel's Punisher, Max Payne, Darth Vader after he turns on the dark side, Dexter Morgan, Jesse Pinkman, and Agent 47.

47 is not an ordinary hitman killing whoever for money. He's an agent of the institute, which in turn serves various powerbrokers. He's a soldier working a job, but when an ethical choice is presented to him (such as turning on the institute) he opts for the heroic.

[–] adriannic 9 years ago

True.47's humanity shown mostly in Silent Assassin,even more than Absolution.

[–] vinithshere 9 years ago

You happen to have a misconception about the meaning of the word 'protagonist'.

Agent 47 IS the protagonist of the Hitman video games. That does not mean he is the good guy. It only means he's the lead character around which the series revolves. That's it.

Even in Absolution, he's NOT a good guy. Did you play the game at all? Diana has always been the closest thing to a friend (besides being his handler) that 47 had in his entire life, besides Father Vittorio. So when Diana entrusted 47 with a task and him being a man of his words (you would know 47 is a man of his words if you had paid attention to any of the Hitman games) and a true professional, he did exactly what he was assigned to do. Protect Victoria.

From the first game to the latest, 47 is never a good guy. He is what he is.... an assassin born to kill. But that does not make him incapable of making choices. Like for example, he did make a conscious choice to not be close to anyone because it might place their life in danger.

His childhood and the training he received might make him impervious to fear and remorse/grief/sentiments, but that doesn't mean he is an emotionless robot. And his choices have never been out of character.

Absolution was a terrible game, but his character was never out of place (from what I remember of the story)

Even in this movie, they did NOT make him the good guy. If your definition of good is breaking into an embassy and killing the guards there just to get to Katia and John, then yeah he just might be the good guy.

The movies are only attempting to show us that there might be more to 47 than what we see on the surface.

I didn't like any of the movies but I just don't think they're trying to make him into a good guy. They're just trying to make him more likeable. As far as movies are concerned, a character doesn't have to be good to be likeable. Didn't forget the Joker, did you? Or even Hanibal Lecter from Silence of the Lambs?

[–] jonstark99 9 years ago

I thought the 1st part of this movie worked well for just that reason. It was like Terminator in that way, 47 was this unstoppable machine and John Smith seemed like a fallible hero. Too bad they decided to flip the script (and make the female lead of course the stereotypical 'better than everyone at everything' and psychic as well. ugh.)

Of course we as the audience knew all along that 47 would end up being the protagonist, so it wasn't really that clever at all when the so-called 'twist' arrived. A better twist would have been an entire movie of 47 trying to kill the girl, narrow but believable escapes, John Smith actually being a heroic defender (maybe if they really want to throw the audience, at the very end 47 wins and kills the girl after all, just after the audience is led to believe she's safe).

I think the idea of the hitman as the bad guy would have been a far superior strategy to what they chose. Especially the ending was just flat and awful on this one.

Plus, before they make another hitman movie, the directors and writers and fight choreographers really need to watch and study John Wick.

[–] O-Face 9 years ago

Yeah, I totally got Terimator vibes at the beginning.

Best line in DC Comics:
http://i.imgur.com/XL5ZBKS.png

[–] cyguration 9 years ago

I think the idea of the hitman as the bad guy would have been a far superior strategy to what they chose. Especially the ending was just flat and awful on this one.

Totally agreed. Had they kept him as the bad guy throughout the movie and Quinto as the not-quite-good-enough protector, it would have been an edge-of-your-seat thriller. But the route they went was beyond awful.