Chloë Sevigny is poorly cast as a transsexual hit-man, which I hadn't expected. The more sweet and timid characters she played in 'Kids' (1995) and 'Boys don't cry' (1999) are the ones I remember off the top of my head, and to see her here, with her fragile physique and swooning eyes playing a hardened hit-man and flooring any opponent necessary; it just doesn't fit. Someone noted elsewhere that casting a woman here is also a missed opportunity to have a significant lead played by an actual transsexual, and I agree. Hopefully, that will only be a matter of time(?).
Storywise, 'Hit & miss' is pretty much what the title suggests. A lot of developments are credible and play cleverly with (false) expectations of the viewer, but with a couple of big exceptions. The most unbelievable thing is that Riley is able to get the gun from underneath her while being strangled by the (just about) ten times more strong John... she wouldn't have survived in real life (plus, it would have added to the drama of the series). Then, I don't believe that her utterly apathetic mother would just get up and leave her son, even if he is a total asshole - or at least don't cram it into just one episode.
And, personally, I didn't find all the characters to be all that compelling, such as Riley (dear God, did she look like death itself throughout pretty much the whole series?) or Ryan (the son) whose dealings with certain (understandable) issues felt rather arbitrary. I already talked about Chloe, but I'd like to add that she also looks rather glum all of the time, which may be understandable, but still... One of the few happy moments (when she is overjoyed after a rendezvous with Ben) really stood out, 'Hit & miss' could have done with a little more of that^. Adding to all that, Mia's part of coming in and taking over at the ranch was pretty strong, a little too strong; in spite of all the hardships and the open ending she is a sort of superwoman who saves the day. Perhaps it was all too much for just six episodes...
No, this was a disappointment, though certainly not all bad; the struggle for a relationship between Mia and Ben was very well done. To add the element of a hit-man with the bonus violence which such entails, is more far-fetched than anything else. A small 6 out of 10.
^ I'm not impartial to glum thriller/dramas (on the contrary), but I'll mention 'Hinterland', a series that reminded me a little of this, but which comes together way better in terms of atmosphere and drama (even if it is, at its core, a detective story).
Storywise, 'Hit & miss' is pretty much what the title suggests. A lot of developments are credible and play cleverly with (false) expectations of the viewer, but with a couple of big exceptions. The most unbelievable thing is that Riley is able to get the gun from underneath her while being strangled by the (just about) ten times more strong John... she wouldn't have survived in real life (plus, it would have added to the drama of the series). Then, I don't believe that her utterly apathetic mother would just get up and leave her son, even if he is a total asshole - or at least don't cram it into just one episode.
And, personally, I didn't find all the characters to be all that compelling, such as Riley (dear God, did she look like death itself throughout pretty much the whole series?) or Ryan (the son) whose dealings with certain (understandable) issues felt rather arbitrary. I already talked about Chloe, but I'd like to add that she also looks rather glum all of the time, which may be understandable, but still... One of the few happy moments (when she is overjoyed after a rendezvous with Ben) really stood out, 'Hit & miss' could have done with a little more of that^. Adding to all that, Mia's part of coming in and taking over at the ranch was pretty strong, a little too strong; in spite of all the hardships and the open ending she is a sort of superwoman who saves the day. Perhaps it was all too much for just six episodes...
No, this was a disappointment, though certainly not all bad; the struggle for a relationship between Mia and Ben was very well done. To add the element of a hit-man with the bonus violence which such entails, is more far-fetched than anything else. A small 6 out of 10.
^ I'm not impartial to glum thriller/dramas (on the contrary), but I'll mention 'Hinterland', a series that reminded me a little of this, but which comes together way better in terms of atmosphere and drama (even if it is, at its core, a detective story).