‘Old Guy’ (2025) Review – A Tried And True Formula Lacks Excitement

You have seen it a thousand times. The old veteran is charged with showing the rookie the ropes. The senior employee is grumpy and annoyed with the wide-eyed youngster. There is a reason that this formula has been repeated so often. It provides a myriad of opportunities for humor and action surrounded by a hopefully lasting connection between the two. Old Guy is the most recent attempt at this well tested movie combination. Despite the stacked cast, there is a sense of newness that is missing and you can feel it throughout the runtime.

Old Guy stars Christoph Waltz as an older hitman named Danny Dolinski. At the start of the film, he is struggling with a cast. We soon are told that he has had a surgical procedure performed to deal with arthritis in his hand. His shooting hand, no less. After finally returning to work, he is tasked with training a young hitman, Wihlborg (Cooper Hoffman). The younger of the pair is known to be “a prodigy” but struggles with his emotions, not to mention accidentally shooting bystanders. 

The back-and-forth between the two is performed well enough by Waltz and Hoffman, but the actual dialogue, written by Greg Johnson, feels stunted and off-kilter. All of the components are present, but they never quite fit together. Dolinski and Wihlborg are like a stubborn pair of puzzle pieces that look like they connect but just simply refuse to click. Luckily, there is a subplot that works. Maybe a little too well, as it drowns out the main narrative, but sometimes you will take what you can get. 

Dolinski, for all of his other issues, is a bit of a romantic. Sure, he drinks too much, takes drugs, and ends up in bed with numerous women; but there is something missing. That missing piece is perfectly placed in his longtime friend, Anata (Lucy Liu). Sometimes, you watch a performance and it becomes clear that they are almost too good for the material that surrounds them. This is absolutely the case with Liu and Old Guy. The immediate chemistry between her and Waltz, even when both are in denial, is the one thing that will make the audience lean forward in their seats. 

Not only does the romance work, but so does the moral core of the film, also put forward by Anata. She understands Dolinski, knows exactly what makes him tick. This performance immediately allows the audience to believe that they have actually been friends for years. This, along with the mild flirtation, creates the only thing that our old guy has to strive for, besides being really good at his job. In a nice touch, Wihlborg notes their connection even before the two are willing to admit it to themselves. This is another well-worn path in comedic action films, but it works here due to Liu and Waltz’s easy connected style.

Oh right, the action. This was always going to be a difficult sell. In the old vs new partnerships, it has worked in the past (think Lethal Weapon), but Hoffman is simply not in his element. Frankly, as opposed to being the young gun, he seems more of the calm veteran. In a better crafted film, this could be an interesting twist on the formula. But here, it feels like everyone is simply going through the motions. There is little suspense, even when it might be present on the page. The audience has a pretty solid notion of where things are headed, and when the action is subpar, it makes the entire film suffer. 

Again, the pieces are all here. Given a larger budget for set pieces, tweaks to the characters to provide a bit more successful comedy, and more of a focus on Anata and Dolinski, this could ascend much higher and be genuinely enjoyable. As it is, Old Guy is a paint-by-numbers buddy action comedy that is just entertaining enough to fill the time.

Old Guy will debut in theaters and on Digital platforms on February 21, 2025, courtesy of The Avenue.