Wild Target

Bill Nighy and Emily Blunt melted hearts as a father and daughter in Stephen Poliakoff's TV drama Gideon's Daughter, but their relationship in this black comedy will more likely turn stomachs. Nighy is initially very charming as a hitman having an identity crisis, while Eileen Atkins, as his batty mother, creates more sympathy for his plight. She strongly disapproves when he fails to pull the trigger on a pretty thief (Blunt doing kooky) who has defrauded an effortlessly sinister Rupert Everett. What follows is a contrived series of events where Nighy serves as Blunt's bodyguard and winds up mentoring Rupert Grint (in a completely extraneous role). Martin Freeman has a few shining moments as a rival assassin, but that's largely thanks to his comedy skills. As the trio head to the countryside to hide out, the action hits a dead end and the laughs dry up, but it's the budding romance between the young free spirit and the crotchety old triggerman that really kills it.