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Bangkok Dangerous (2008) More at IMDbPro »

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119 comments in total

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107 out of 166 people found the following review useful:
Lame, boring and obvious, 9 September 2008

Author: azgalarneau from United States

I don't care how interesting the scenery is if you know the entire story arc in the first 45 seconds - and you haven't even watched the trailer. Nic Cage looks like a corpse and his acting isn't much better. The relationship that the film puts forward is as believable as a love affair between a squirrel and a stuffed alligator. Plus of course the story has Cage break every rule he says is important - but never offer a plausible motivation. Maybe the original was really something, but this version is dead on arrival and should be saved for the second DVD in a video night, when you want everyone to leave your house and let you get some sleep.

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53 out of 84 people found the following review useful:
Predictable, 7 September 2008

Author: mattwaterhouse from United Kingdom

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

This is about an assassin called Joe who decides to end his career after his next trip abroad. The next trip is to (you'll never guess) Bangkok, where he has 4 people to kill, and he hires a young crook to work for him. However, Joe begins to break his own rules as he begins to see something of himself in the crook and falls in love with a deaf chemist.

I feel sorry for Nicolas Cage. He is possibly the biggest victim of typecasting in Hollywood, and he does his best with the roles he is given but the odd film slips through the net, and sadly Bangkok Dangerous is one of them. Nic is distinctly average in this and the performances of the supporting cast aren't much better with the notable exception of Charlie Yeung, who delivers a fine performance as the love interest.

This film isn't awful, it just suffers from an average and completely unoriginal script. This is Action Movie 101, and unlike some movies it doesn't get away with it by glossing over the cracks with special effects, like Wanted. Like Wanted, I successfully predicted the entire plot straight after Nic's opening monologue. Some scenes were very good, some very bad, the scale is balanced. The movie is like Marmite, you'll either love it or hate it.

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18 out of 23 people found the following review useful:
Shockingly mundane & ordinary…, 14 September 2008

Author: Coventry from the Draconian Swamp of Unholy Souls

"Bangkok Dangerous" isn't a bad film – or at least not as bad as most of the reviews around here claim – but it is an astonishingly ordinary film that features literally every cliché of "hired assassin" concept you can possibly think of. There's the lonely and super-skilled hit man who intents to pull of one last job before quitting the business for good, he teaches his errand boy to become his successor, finds love and happiness with a girl for the first time and – last but not least – refuses to make the final hit because his target is a noble individual. We know this is the prototypic pitch of every thriller in its type, yet we still pay the full price of a cinema ticket because the film stars Nicolas Cage and we'll probably see a lot of spectacular action and virulent gunfire. "Bangkok Dangerous" is a big-budgeted remake of a Thai thriller released in 1999, which was also directed by the Pang brothers. In the original, the hit man was a deaf-mute but since Nicolas Cage is far too expensive to have him shut up the whole time, they made his love interest a deaf-mute instead. Unfortunately, this takes away the one truly ingenious aspect about the original. What remains is a painfully predictable and bland thriller that can't even be saved by the handful of impressively staged action sequences. Still I wouldn't call "Bangkok Dangerous" a complete waste of time, though, as there are a couple of stylish and worthwhile – albeit less obvious – elements working in its favor. Nic Cage gives a good performance as the unworldly killer and particularly the Pang Bros' depiction of the city of Bangkok is deeply enchanting. Especially at night it looks like a melancholic and depressing place infested with prostitution, petty crimes and perverted tourists. The moody soundtrack emphasizes the atmosphere of melancholy even more. This is definitely not a film that'll increase the tourist business there. Otherwise there's very little to say about "Bangkok Dangerous". If you're a fan of Nicolas Cage and rough action, you won't regret giving this one a look. Just realize you'll have completely forgotten about it the next day.

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13 out of 17 people found the following review useful:
What's The Deal With Nicholas Cage?, 14 January 2009

Author: ccthemovieman-1 from Lockport, NY, United States

Is it my imagination or has Nicholas Cage been involved in a lot of B-type films the past decade? I pretty much enjoyed this movie, don't get me wrong - but it's still not what you'd call a classy movie, not the kind of film he'd be involved with years ago. Now, he seems to prefer playing total wackos in stories that don't have a lot of credibility.

Here, he's a Joe The Hit-man in Thailand, who falls for Miss Wholesome, and then turns "Rambo" by killing 50 people while en route to saving his protégé. The only thing not a cliché was the ending; that was a bit of a shocker.

Shahkrit Yamnarm costars as "Kong," a man who becomes "Joe's" student. He's the one Joe saves. Charlie Yeung, a winsome Hong Kong actress who is almost 35 years of age but could pass for 21, plays Joe's love interest. Get this: she's a pharmacist, beautiful and wholesome as they come, and a deaf-mute! Yet, sleazy Joe sweeps her off her feet in no time!

Man, you have to really enjoy the stylish visuals and sound (which ARE very good), the pretty good.....and leave it at that, to enjoy this movie. It's better to just watch it with your brain on hold and enjoy it, because if you start thinking about it, the film gets dumb and dumber.

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19 out of 29 people found the following review useful:
Is it predictable ? - YES. But it is also very entertaining., 27 October 2008

Author: fczenit from UK

So what if I can predict what is going to happens, I can do it with most films nowadays - its not about that. Its about making a movie that entertains, and IMHO they have achieved that.

OK, some of the shooting sequences were a bit dodgy and the narration descended into the cliché on occasions but overall I rate this film better then most action films I have seen in recent months.

Cage is solid in his role and so is his side kick. The elephant did a good job too but his role was only in 2 scenes :) So all in all 7 is my vote and it could have been better if not for a few lines of monologue and a couple of silly shootouts across water canisters.

Watch it and make your own mind.

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11 out of 15 people found the following review useful:
It is not incredibly bad as the critics or the public would like you to think., 4 March 2009

Author: Lucien Lessard from Canada

A mysterious professional assassin, who called himself Joe (Oscar-Winner:Nicolas Cage) goes to Bangkok to do his last job. His mission is to kill four strangers by killing one at the time. Joe becomes tired of his so-called profession, he teaches a curious young man (Shankrit Yamhnam) to trained as a killer. Meanwhile, Joe falls in love with a lovely young woman (Charlie Yeung), who's deaf-mute. But the people, who hired Joe tries to double-cross him by trying to find his identity and kill him, once Joe's last hit is too risky to handle. Joe takes his skills and decide to use it by the people, who hired him for the work.

Directed by the Pang Brothers (The Messengers) made an lively action-thriller with some good scenes and excellent locations. Cage is fine in this movie but Yamhnam and Yeung have the better moments in the film. Actually the Pang Brothers remade their own film with a bigger budget, American lead actor and changing a few plot points from the original 1999 version. Plenty of film critics hated this remake but isn't as bad as what they say about it.

The DVD Special Edition is from the two-disc set. Disc one has an sharp anamorphic Widescreen (1.78:1) transfer and an good Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound. The DVD includes two featurettes, an interesting alternative ending and the original theatrical trailer. Disc two is the digital copy of the movie. "Bangkok Dangerous" isn't a great flick but it's fairly fast paced with some stylishly photography action sequences and a few good moments. Fans of the filmmakers work and fans of action movies will enjoy it. (*** 1/2 out of *****).

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17 out of 27 people found the following review useful:
Reasonably good movie, 10 September 2008

Author: Michel from Netherlands

First of all, for those of you seeking an incredibly deep and intriguing story line, this movie is not for you! This is a movie for people who just want to see some good solid action and good entertainment.

When i first saw the grade on IMDb i was a bit skeptical, but after seeing the movie i was quite satisfied with it.

Sure, it is quite predictable and the acting is not ground breaking. But the lasting action was quite entertaining for me.

The biggest flaw of this movie is probably the story line. Some parts of the story are rather rushed without telling background information. Sometimes the story feels a bit rushed with more focus on the action than the actual reason for an event to happen. Some parts of the movie feel a bit overdone and unnecessary making the main character look quite dumb...

I find this movie worth a 6,4 (i did not want to give it a 6 because i do find it deserves higher than a 6, this explains the 7 star rating)

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66 out of 126 people found the following review useful:
Average remake plenty of action, suspense and thrills by Nicolas Cage and Pang brothers, 24 August 2008

Author: ma-cortes from Santander Spain

This story deals about an American hit-man(Nicolas Cage, also producer)in Thailand, he kills his victims with no remorse . The drug addict murderer forms a relationship with a young man(pleasant Shahkrit Yamnarm), as he teaches his craft to Thai hustler. Meanwhile, the killer falls in love with a deaf-mute( in the first version this handicap is borne by the murderous) pharmacist(enjoyable Charlie Young) and he shares brief moments of happiness.

This detailed study about an assassin and a youth he trains is an exciting movie with a great visual style. It concerns about murders, vengeance,love and this one delivers it well. The picture reworks many familiar issues, as a double-crossed hit-man in love. The rate of events blending drama and action are enhanced by extended length of the hunting scenes and occasional flashes of brilliance. There are a great deal of killing with some creative moments wrought from heavy stylistics and with a John Woo style. It succeeds in building intrigue, tension and nice performances, thanks to the affecting acting of the girl who plays the deaf and mute , she's frankly marvelous. The characters are well portrayed and they are persons for who the viewer has feeling and compassion. Worth it for the terse script and twists ending.

Furthermore, colorful and granulated cinematography by Decha Srimantra, usual of Pang brothers. Atmospheric musical score and fitting well to action by Brian Tyler ,author of Rambo 4, Constantine, War, among others soundtracks. The motion picture is professionally directed by Pang brothers(Messengers,Re-cycle,The eye 1, 2,3..),shooting during Thailand coup détat. Directors, Danny and Oxide Chun Pang did a cool but uneven work in making this violent story.

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17 out of 29 people found the following review useful:
Depressing viewing experience, 9 September 2008

Author: fertilecelluloid from Mountains of Madness

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

Nicholas Cage, who is in the process of committing career suicide, plays a tired old lump who kills for a living and spouts half a dozen rules he doesn't live by in "Bangkok Dangerous", a pointless remake of a film that wasn't great in the first place. One cliché-ridden scene follows another in this Pang Brothers pile-up of movie references. Even a generous budget can not inject an ounce of life into this sorry mess. The action scenes are slow and confusing. The performances are all retarded and misdirected. The words "stylish" and "cool" have been bandied around in reviews of this abortion. The film is neither. Cage's hit-man is a massively unengaging character with the year's worst haircut; he looks like an extra from "Combat Shock", a film that is one hundred times better than this (made for 10,000 times less). Ultimately, a depressing viewing experience and a cinematic eyesore.

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80 out of 155 people found the following review useful:
Shockingly bad stuff!, 8 September 2008

Author: peter_okelly from United Kingdom

i went to watch this movie last night because I had a bad hangover and just needed to sit in front of stupidity on a screen. Usually, Nic Cage action flicks are cheesy but have some sort of entertainment value as he can act it up when he chooses to. I couldn't believe my eyes and ears in almost every scene. Even some local chavs behind me were laughing in disbelief. The montage scenes where he is taking the deaf and dumb girl out to dinner and stroking elephants were among the worst I've ever seen. Also, his smile is disturbing. Nic, what the hell's going on brother? Also, the Pang brothers were an edgy asset to film-making. I'm surprised that between them and Cage, they did not sit forward in the editing suite and say 'we can't release this crap!'

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