You wouldn’t have thought that working in the world of wrestling would make for a decent stepping stone into the world of film, but it has certainly been the case for a few mountainous men.

There’s Dwayne ‘the Rock’ Johnson of course, who didn’t just make the transition, but has become one of the biggest box office draws of this generation.

There’s also John Cena, whose involvement in the DCU as Peacemaker has not only given him his own show, but has seen him make his way up the Hollywood ladder with a number of leading men roles.

And then there’s Dave Bautista, who may well be the most interesting prospect to emerge from the wrestling fraternity, whose latest film is a quirky action comedy.

Living and working in the picturesque city of Budapest is American Joe Flood (Bautista). He has an interesting occupation, that of a hit man, working for his handler Zvi (Ben Kingsley). On his latest hit, his path crosses that of ballerina Maize (Sofia Boutella), where he inadvertently ends with her phone. He goes to return it and they hit it off, as it were, and soon become an item.

Joe hasn’t felt this way in years, so decides not to tell her what he does for a living. And then he gets some bad news, after suffering from some bad headaches, his doctor informs him he has a terminal illness, giving him only months to live.

He doesn’t want to go through all the trauma of the sickness, and decides to take matters into his own hands, by asking his handler to put a hit on himself. Zvi refuses, but that doesn’t put Joe off. Instead he goes to a competitor, Antoinette (Pom Klemintieff), who has no such qualms, and rubber stamps the hit. But is Joe making the right call?

This is director J.J. Perry’s follow up to his disappointing directorial debut Dayshift, but thankfully this is a big improvement. It’s based on a 1997 novel by Jay Bonansinga, but feels like it could have been lifted from a graphic novel. It has a brutal visual style, that is pleasing, but with a comic book glow to it. In short, it may be violent, but the type you just can’t take seriously.

In that regard it has more than a little Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World about it, but in a far more inferior fashion.

Bautista has probably made the more diverse choices when it comes to his roles, compared to the other wrestlers, such as appearing in Blade Runner 2049, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, A Knock at the Cabin and the recent Dune: Part Two. This though is probably more in his wheelhouse, action based as it is.

He also reunites with his Guardians of the Galaxy co-star Klemintieff in what is a fun, frothy role for her.

He’s the type of actor where his sheer presence is enough to make an impact, much like Arnold Schwarzenegger, and that his acting ability is secondary. But he proves himself to be adequate enough here, throwing his considerable weight around, and handling more comic moments.

The premise is actually a pretty entertaining one, and Perry delivers the violence and silliness of it all with vibrant direction and energy, resulting in the perfect date night popcorn flick.

Bautista may not be an actor with the most depth and range, but with brave choices, and some good work under his belt – including this, he appears to be killing it.