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Shoot-’em-up action movies are often derided as adolescent-male fantasies, but how often do you see one that could be described as an adolescent-female fantasy? Such is the case of Violet & Daisy, a most adorable hitman movie that snuck through town earlier this year. It’s currently available to rent at Redbox stands, and, in my opinion, well worth $1.20 of your hard-earned money, if not a solid two bucks. Alexis Bledel and Saoirse Ronan play the title characters, a couple of charming young women who work as assassins in a storybook version of Manhattan. The central joke is that they behave like any preteen girl’s fantasy of what she’ll be like when she grows up, dressing smartly, earning respect through her work, and spreading good cheer. Not only are they without malice—they don’t register as sexualized beings either.
