The main character in “The Man From Toronto” on Netflix, Teddy (Kevin Hart), is an annoying, loudmouthed, and unmotivated fool. Anyone who can put up with him for over ten minutes deserves a patience award.
The newest film by director Patrick Hughes is 112 minutes long and contains so many clips from other movies that it ends up being the most annoying cinematic collage.
The darkly comedic hitman thriller, the silly loser wanting to prove oneself underdog movie, the stand-up comedian pr stunt, the false arrest story, and the violent actioner are some of the waypoints on this voyage.
This endeavor only supports my conspiracy that many Netflix movies are primarily made to be watched in the background as fans fold laundry or vacuum cat fur off their IKEA furniture.
You could pause the film every ten minutes without missing anything when you resumed watching.
The Torontonian, played by the bald Woody Harrelson, is a very skilled hitman with a nasty reputation for tormenting people. He is shown working in an opening episode.
The Man From Toronto (as he is credited), who has been hired to obtain information by any means necessary, amasses an incredible collection of cutlery in front of his victim before narrating his origin story.
A grizzly bear unexpectedly attacked his grandfather while he was a little lad growing up “on a frozen lake 500 miles from nowhere,” as he put it. While the grandfather’s grandson watched in amazement, the bear devoured Grandpa.
Once the torture starts, pleading for mercy will be ineffective; any compassion the hitman may have had perished on that icy lake. Nevertheless, the plot is compelling because the man confesses and receives a much more rapid demise than his quiet would have bought.
The “Handler,” as she is referred to on his phone, gives commands to The Man From Toronto. Her name is initially kept a secret in the movie, but the performer who plays her may be recognized immediately, thanks to her unusual voice.
Plot of Movie
Men in various cities, including Miami, Tokyo, Moscow, etc., go by the name “The Handler.” When she believes her guy in Toronto has turned rouge, she will finally contact them. These guys seem to be living in the shadow of their Canadian coworkers and have enormous egos.
The Miami man (Pierson Fode), who was initially seen killing a man with a golf course, appears to have a long-standing grudge that causes him to reappear periodically like a broken record.
Very much for the hitman thriller’s darkly funny story element. Teddy is the author of the underperformer tale. He makes such a mess of things that his understanding, devoted wife Lori (Jasmine Mathews) informs him that her company uses his name to refer to when someone messes up something.
The man from the tornado ended explained.
You’re a verb, she exclaims with joy. In the series of YouTube training videos introducing “The Man From Toronto,” we regularly observe her husband “teddy.”
Hart is at least macho enough to pull off the role of a man hawking weight training equipment like the “TeddyBand” (which pops & slaps him in the head) and the “teddy bear,” a pull-up rack whose workout involves the user being unintentionally crushed underneath the falling apparatus.
Teddy’s most recent pitch is to Marty, the manager of the boxing ring. He has retained Teddy even though the marketing materials Teddy created omit the gym’s location. I wonder if Lori has any sense because she thinks her man’s most recent plan is good.
Teddy wants to spread the word about “no-contact” kickboxing, a cardio workout in which punches are thrown, but no one is struck. We used to refer to it as “shadow boxing” during my professional training days, but who am I to judge?
Because I’m ancient and terribly out of touch with today’s young whippersnappers’ notions, Marty, who is also older, considers it the silliest thing he has ever heard.
Teddy can’t even plan a romantic evening for his wife’s birthday because he cannot handle such a simple chore. So naturally, his latest attempt will have even bigger stakes than it already does.
This brings up the story of the false identity. Teddy mistakes the location of the cottage he has leased for Lori’s birthday excursion due to “low toner” in his printer.
In “The Man from Toronto,” the phrase “low toner” is used so frequently that it may serve as a drinking game. Unfortunately, Teddy’s oversight takes him to the cabin in Onancock, Virginia, which houses the intended victim of The Man From Toronto’s torment.
The lads believe Teddy was employed. When the natural stuff arrives, as expected, all hell breaks loose.
You are aware of what comes next. Through Roger Ebert’s Idiot Plot principles, TMFT is forced to follow Teddy as he navigates the hitman story.
Review of movie
But unfortunately, the FBI is also urging Teddy to put himself in danger for reasons I don’t have enough words to convey. A gorgeous male agent Lori thinks is working for Teddy is using the FBI to keep her occupied by dragging her on shopping trips and spa outings.
Unfortunately, the script by Robbie Fox with Chris Bremner has Teddy saying and doing actions that no one in his situation would be foolish enough to do, so none of this is even close to being realistic.
Hart is an expert at talking his way out of trouble, so this should have been funny. But it’s not even his hold comedy abilities that can save this exchange.
A gorgeous male FBI agent who Lori thinks is working for Teddy is dragging her on shopping trips. Also, spa outings while the FBI keeps her occupied.
Unfortunately, because Teddy frequently says and does things that no one in Teddy’s position would be foolish enough to do, the script by Robbie Fox & Chris Bremner renders none of this even the slightest bit credible. This should have been funny because Hart is an expert at negotiating his way out of trouble. However, not really even his stand-up abilities can save this conversation.
All of this builds up to the violent, intense scene. Hughes employs the abhorrent speeding-up method that makes comprehension nearly impossible.
Anywhere along the way, Teddy and the Man from Toronto form a tender yet manly friendship. Netflix customers find a hairball that is too enormous to vacuum up. When an Ellen Barkin with a rocket launcher can’t save the movie, you know it’s in trouble.
Barkin destroys multiple automobiles and incinerates them in stunning Joel Silver-worthy fireballs. It’s too bad she couldn’t direct that in this movie.
