The life of an anonymous assassin takes an unexpected turn when he travels to Thailand to complete a series of contract killings. Joe (Nicolas Cage), a remorseless hitman, is in Bangkok to execute four enemies of a ruthless crime boss named Surat. He hires Kong (Shahkrit Yamnarm), a street punk and pickpocket, to run errands for him with the intention of covering his tracks by killing him at the end of the assignment. Strangely, Joe, the ultimate lone wolf, finds himself mentoring the young man instead whilst simultaneously being drawn into a tentative romance with a local shop girl. As he falls further under the sway of Bangkok’s intoxicating beauty, Joe begins to question his isolated existence and let down his guard …just as Surat decides it’s time to clean house.
Directors Oxide Pang and Danny Pang (The Eye) paint an explosive picture of the Bangkok underworld, illuminated with neon and saturated in violence. Based on the Pang Brothers’ wildly popular Hong Kong action film of the same name, Bangkok Dangerous, is written by Jason Richman. The adrenaline-powered thriller stars Nicolas Cage (Ghost Rider), Charlie Young (Seven Swords), Shahkrit Yamnarm (Belly of the Beast) and Dom Hetrakul (Sniper 3). The film is produced by Jason Shuman, William Sherak, Nicolas Cage and Norm Golightly. Andrew Pfeffer, Derek Dauchy, Denis O’Sullivan and Ben Waisbren serve as the executive producers.
As Bangkok Dangerous begins, a black van winds its way through the city of Prague flanked by police escorts. Its cargo: a one time Russian gangster turned police informant. From the city’s cathedral bell tower, the convoy is being watched by Joe (Nicolas Cage), an anonymous gunman who tracks his prey through a high-powered rifle sight all the way to a police interrogation room. As the cathedral bell rings to mark the hour, Joe fires two shots, killing the informant instantly. The assassin disappears into the crowded Czech streets, first getting rid of his weapon and then his equally disposable assistant, leaving no trace of his presence.
A cold, ruthless and utterly efficient killer for hire, Joe next arrives in the heart of the gaudy, gritty red light district of Bangkok. Hired by a brutal gangster, Surat, to carry out four murders, his first order of business is to find an accomplice who will preserve his anonymity and act as go-between—one who won’t be missed when Joe cleans up again. He recruits Kong (Shahkrit Yamnarm), a skinny street rat and action movie enthusiast, to be his errand boy.
Kong’s primary responsibility is retrieving the hit instructions in a locked metal briefcase from Surat’s emissary, a gorgeous exotic dancer named Aom (Panward Hemmanee). He becomes instantly infatuated with her, courting her with stolen goods, but she reacts only with amused contempt.
Joe carries out his first meticulously planned hit on the Minister of the Interior in the bustling Bangkok streets, but is slightly injured while escaping. When he goes to a drug store for a bandage, Joe finds himself uncharacteristically drawn to a shy, pretty, deaf mute pharmacist named Fon (Charlie Young). The girl, a complete innocent, takes him home to meet her grandmother and, to Joe’s astonishment, a sweet romance blossoms.
When Kong retrieves the instructions for Joe’s next assignment, he is attacked by a gang of street thugs who smash open the briefcase, and Kong discovers Joe’s profession. Now in awe of his American employer, he begs to be trained to fight. Joe’s instincts tell him to kill his assistant on the spot, but something in Kong touches him and he takes the young man under his wing.
Embarking on an intense physical and psychological training regimen, Joe gradually allows Kong to get closer to him than anyone has before, even to the point of letting him tag along on an assignment. Joe’s second target is a vicious gangster and a competitor of Surat’s. To make the man’s death look accidental, Joe stages a drowning in a hotel swimming pool. A third hit takes a dramatic turn when the victim leads the pair on a high speed chase, involving traditional wooden boats and a motorcycle, through the canals of Thailand’s famed Damnoen Saduak Floating Market.
As Kong’s education continues, his confidence grows and so does his love affair with Aom. The pair begins to use information drops as an excuse for romantic rendezvous, and the bond between them deepens. Fon and Joe become increasingly involved, as well, with Joe spending more and more time enjoying his carefree moments. But the spell is broken when the couple is attacked by muggers and Joe instinctively slaughters the two men in short order. Fon, seeing Joe for what he really is, flees in horror and refuses to see him again.
Despondent over Fon’s rejection, Joe withdraws even from Kong and throws himself back into his work, planning to complete his assignments and disappear in his usual manner – without a trace. He arranges to meet Kong immediately after the final murder, promising to take his helper with him, but intending to kill him.
When Joe’s final target turns out to be a hero of the Thai people whom he is asked to assassinate in the midst of a public rally, Joe demands more money and his employer begins to see him as a liability. The gangster uses Aom to lure Kong to his fortress and threatens to kill her if Kong doesn’t reveal Joe’s identity and whereabouts.
As he’s about to carry out his final assignment, Joe observes the hope in the eyes of the people in the street. He flashes on the faces of his countless victims, then an image of Fon at the moment when she sees him for what he is, the monster he has become. Remembering clearly the day he first assumed the role of a killer, he is unable to pull the trigger. As he retreats, a police sniper sees the barrel of his gun, and Joe is instantly engulfed in a barrage of ricocheting bullets.
Joe manages to escape, but only to find himself the object of sweeping manhunts by both Surat and the police. Before making his way out of Bangkok, however, he realizes he has business to attend to: He must rescue Kong and Aom and destroy Surat, even it means sacrificing himself.
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