Lisa Johnson Mandell’s The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard review says that even an engaging cast can’t save this disjointed action flick.

I found the original The Hitman’s Bodyguard cheeky and amusing, if not consummately memorable, so I was primed to enjoy the sequel, especially with the additions of Salma Hayek and Antonio Banderas. Stars Ryan Reynolds and Samuel L. Jackson had already proven they could spark an abrasive onscreen chemistry.

The sequel starts out well enough, with Reynolds, as top-rated international bodyguard Michale Bryce, attending a televised black tie awards ceremony for Bodyguard of the Year, where he’s the favored contender. It’s a fun premise.

But it doesn’t take long for the film to careen full speed ahead into a series of loud, head-scratching action sequences that will likely leave you checking your watch. It’s a short movie mind you, clocking in at one hour and 39 minutes, but you can only stand so much frantic mania and quick cut eye strain.

The premise, if I understand it correctly, has Michael Bryce trying to recover from a vocational trauma and distancing himself from the whole bodyguard thing. Suddenly and violently, feisty Sonia Kincaid (Hayek) inserts herself into his life, claiming her new husband, the world’s most deadly hitman Darius Kincaid (Jackson), needs urgent protection. Given Bryce’s history with the hitman, he’s understandably reluctant.

But Bryce is soon catapulted into an international plot for European domination that involves a Greek tycoon (Banderas, using an unapologetic Spanish accent), big guns, a gazillion expendable bad guys, car chases ad nauseam and endless fist fests. Just when you think it can’t get any more frantic, Morgan Freeman pops up as… (spoiler deleted).

The editing, appearing to have been done in a blender, is so choppy and inconsistent it’s really hard to discern what’s going on, and who’s harming who. After what seems like the 50th shootout, you stop caring.

Which is not to say The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard doesn’t have its moments. The characters are acerbically endearing and the energy is relentless. But that’s not enough to keep it from missing its mark.

Rated R

1 Hour 39 Minutes

Still want to see this action comedy after reading The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard review? Find out where it’s playing at a theater near you on Fandango.com.

Lisa Johnson Mandell’s The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard review says that even an engaging cast can’t save this disjointed action flick.