Writer: Loong Wai Ting

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Watch this if you liked: "Wanted", "The Departed"

Categorising "Bangkok Dangerous" can be done without having to break sweat. In short, it's never going to be movie of the year and neither is it going to be the worst movie ever made. "Bangkok Dangerous" marked the Pang Brothers' return to making a film with Bangkok as their backdrop, after the moderately successful Thai-Chinese horror "The Eye". Though that didn't quite make it in some respects, the brothers did show some Western filmmakers what they're capable of.

Now, let's get down to business. For a movie with such a title, I'd say the brothers didn't quite nail it. For one, "Bangkok Dangerous" opened with disappointment when audiences
were treated to a slow opening, almost narrative style, instead of an assassination kill-out.

Call it "creative filmmaking", but for a man to dodge every bullet that flies through at top speed and at the same time firing back - can that really be possible? Forget the wind willowing your eyes that makes any eye contact possible. In reality, the chances of walking out alive without bullet graffiti on your body are pretty damn slim, especially if Nicholas Cage does not have superpowers in the story.

Throughout the entire running time of "Bangkok Dangerous", gun logic and reload sequences are neglected; and one feels as if the bullets have a mind of their own on who to hit and who to avoid. What's really annoying though is that Hong Kong actress Charlie Yeung. Her portrayal of a mute girl wasn't very good. Performance wise, Nicolas Cage can be oh-so-much-better if only he wanted to look more like a mean and cold killer, instead of carrying forward his "National Treasure" style into this movie. It'd have been more dangerous that way, no? That's the name of the game!

Well, the good news is "Bangkok Dangerous" will pass the time, even when the most boring scene is rolling.

Cinema Online, 23 October 2008