There’s always a bit of a problem when reviewing twisty thrillers; how much of the plot to reveal in providing an overview, while also not ruining any surprises? I’m going to take a punt here that you’ve at least read the title of this new Netflix production, Hit & Run, when I give away that the inciting incident is a hit and run. Which kills the protagonist’s wife. Arghhhh, sorry, well that’s the first 20 minutes ruined.
Fortunately there are many, many twists left, enough to leave you with mild whiplash, as grieving husband Segev Azulai, played by Lior Raz, delves ever deeper into the ensuing mystery surrounding his dancer wife’s death. And as you can probably tell by the V and Zs in the names, this is an Israeli production, the country’s first original for Netflix, no doubt resulting from the international success of Fauda. This series is created and co-written by that same team, and just as Fauda was partly based on Raz’s real life experiences as a commando in an elite counter-terrorism unit, here too his character has a similar background. Alas when the story shifts to America, as Raz did after leaving the IDF, I’m afraid it does not incorporate his stint as Arnold Schwarzenegger’s bodyguard. Spoiler alert.
Though that should tell you how tough Raz is, and he carries that physical authenticity to his roles, while mercifully being able to emote better than his former client as he alternates between angry, mournful, confused and fists for the next nine hours. There is some pretty shoddy acting from some of the rest of the cast, unfortunately mostly the Israelis, which can make the first episode a bit of a chore, yet as the plot builds momentum during the second episode and the action shifts to America in the third, you mostly feel like you’re in a safe pair of hands to persevere with it. This is never more true than when Gregg Henry rocks up; you’ll recognise him from everything and nothing, like all the great character actors.
What can be a problem is the uneven intertwining of Israeli and American styles, locations and actors, which can at times be a bit jarring. One moment it feels and is shot like a soap, the next an independent feature, the next an episode of CSI. Not that there aren’t pleasures on the Israeli side of things, cheesy Israeli tour guides, yarmulke-sporting gangsters, Jewish funerals where everyone’s in jeans.
But where the two worlds do mesh really well, is the transplanting of the tough Israeli spy into a New York setting. This is less You Don’t Mess with the Zohan and more Jack Bauer in 24, but as played by a Jewish Drax the Destroyer. The strange combination of the Israeli male archetype being pragmatically aggressive while retaining his sensitivity, provides a nice shade to the already crowded genre of action heroes. As to whether this particular action hero will keep hitting and running? Well, I wouldn’t want to ruin it for you.
