Skip to: Content
Skip to: Site Navigation
Skip to: Search

December 2, 2008 7:51:28 PM CST

Learn about Newser Points »

« Back to the grid | Next story »

Bangkok Dangerously Bland

Posted Sep 5, 08 10:37 AM CDT in Arts & Living 

(Newser) – The Pang brothers' Hollywood rehash of their 1999 hit Bangkok Dangerous lacks spice despite the exotic locale, say critics. The "rough, Bangkok underworld-set story" has morphed into "a cleaner tourist's take on crime and corruption," Jordan Mintzer writes in Variety, with Nicolas Cage playing a more conventional hit man than the deaf-mute of the original.

The film didn't screen for critics, the LA Times reports—typically not a positive sign—but Katey Rich of Cinema Blend manged to get a look and finds Cage's performance unusually charmless. "All the fun, violent parts of a movie about a hit man are set aside in favor of a handful of emotional side stories," she writes. The Pangs use Bangkok to create "an enchanting, slightly mystical sense of place," but  "unlike the city it's named for, Bangkok Dangerous is merely average."

Sources Rotten Tomatoes, Variety, Cinema Blend, Los Angeles Times

0 comments | Print E-mail | Digg Seed this on Newsvine Add this link to Del.icio.us StumbleUpon

Related Newser Stories

  • Four Christmases a Big Turkey

    Nov 26, 08 9:46 AM CST
    Four Christmases a Big Turkey Holiday comedy Four Christmases had some critics chuckling but left most moaning ho-ho-no. Vince Vaughn and Reese Witherspoon star as a couple forced by circumstance to visit the dysfunctional families of their divorced parents, but the "predictable and dyspeptic story" lacks the bite of misanthropic holiday classics like Bad Santa, Claudia Puig writes in USA Today.
    More »

  • Bolt Is Fetching Fun

    Nov 21, 08 1:18 PM CST
    Bolt Is Fetching Fun Disney's latest animated movie may not win prizes for originality, but Bolt is barking up the right tree for family entertainment, say critics. John Travolta voices with "terrific tenderness" the super-powered pooch who's unaware that his life has been a canine Truman Show, writes Michael Rechtshaffen in the Hollywood Reporter. Miley Cyrus is equally effective as his owner. More »

  • Craig's Bond Saves Solace

    Nov 14, 08 12:13 PM CST
    Craig's Bond Saves Solace Quantum of Solace doesn't quite measure up to its predecessor, but that's because the Bond makers set the bar so high with Casino Royale, say critics. Daniel Craig returns for his second outing as the superspy, and his cold-blooded but charismatic performance ensures that his "place as the best Bond since Sean Connery remains secure," Joe Neumaier writes in the New York Daily News. More »

  • Madagascar Sequel Not Wildly Different

    Nov 7, 08 9:09 AM CST
    Madagascar Sequel Not Wildly Different Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa brings back the on-the-run New York menagerie, and DreamWorks hasn't monkeyed much with the first movie's winning, if slightly tired, formula, say critics. The celebrity-voiced animals' new adventure "is aimed mostly at children and should score a direct hit," Kirk Honeycutt writes in the Hollywood Reporter.
    More »

  • Porno Naughty But Nice

    Oct 31, 08 11:49 AM CDT
    Porno Naughty But Nice Indie director and slacker king Kevin Smith has made a surprisingly tender film with Zack and Miri Make a Porno, critics say. Elizabeth Banks and Seth Rogan star as a pair of "genuinely likable social misfits" whose platonic friendship is put to the test when they decide to make an adult film to pay the bills, Sean Axmaker writes in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.
    More »

In this photo provided by LionsGate, Nicolas Cage stars as 'Joe' a hitman sent to Bangkok to pull off a series of jobs in Lionsgate's "Bangkok Dangerous."   (AP Photo)
Nicolas Cage speaks to reporters during a press conference to promote a movie in Tokyo on Feb. 21, 2007.   (AP Photo)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
Trailer for 'Bangkok Dangerous.'   (XBurimX)

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next »
Our editors also recommend:

Threads (
1
 of 2)

Tags

movie • movie review • Bangkok • action movie • Nicolas Cage


Loading...

Premium Articles from HighBeam

Find more articles like this

Today's Most Popular

Loading...

Other Arts & Living Stories

What is Newser?

2008 Codie Finalist

Face it: there's too much news. At Newser a team of editors and writers culls the most important stories from hundreds of U.S. and international sources and reduces them to a headline, picture, and two paragraphs. It's the Newser guarantee: we can take any report or column or video and pack what you need to know into 120 words or less. Newser's short-form aggregation, visual format, and unique information tools help you get more of the kind of news you want, in a quicker and more entertaining way. And we do it 24/7—you can come back morning, noon, night (and in between) for something new that matters. Read less, know more.

Learn more »