The attempt to create a wiseacre stunt spectacular is noble, but the failure is at the script level.

Hawk doesn't get truly grotty until its second reel, following a few merely mediocre setup scenes establishing Bruce as a newly sprung cat burglar coerced by a local Mafioso into committing a da Vinci-related heist.

Hudson Hawk is a high-budget movie full of low-budget eccentricity.

A uneven and often confused film that matches great stunts with bad jokes, explosive action sequences with irritating silliness.