A SOLID ACTION/DRAMA/SUSPENSE FILM FROM CHINA AN EXPERT KILLER MEETS A WOMAN WHO MAY BE THE KEY TO MAKING HIM CHANGE HIS LIFESTYLE. FULL OF ACTION, FULL OF EXCITEMENT, AND EVEN SHOWS A LITTLE MEANING TOWARD THE END. MOST AMERICAN FILMS NOWADAYS FAIL TO BE THIS GOOD. IF YOU LOVE FOREIGN FILMS, YOU SHOULD LOVE THIS ONE. FILMS LIKE THIS SHOW THAT THERE'S MORE TO CHINESE FILMMAKING THAN JUST MARTIAL ARTS FILMS. I'D RECCOMEND IT TO ANY FOREIGN FILM LOVER. IN CHINESE WITH ENGLISH SUBTITLES.
The cover is cool but... The movie itself isn't as exciting as I had hoped. About the escapades of a deaf hitman, it has its moments as he falls in love and out of touch with his life. The are a few easy to hate antagonists as well as the love stricken lead killer. Overall, it didn't hold my attention as I wanted it to. A decent effort but more for big Asian film fans.don't believe the advertisements After reading the reviews and seeing the sound bites of reviewers in the DVD package, I set forth to buy Bangkok Dangerous. I was expecting a "hyperkinetic" movie, as one critic put it and a cinematic style that's "similar to John Woo and Quentin Tarantino". I got neither. What I got is a languidly paced film about a deaf-mute hitman eager to redeem himself for a pretty young pharmacist's love. Actually, that's the most interesting part of the movie, how the hitman communicates his love to Fon, the pharmacist. The gunplay, action, the pacing and the camera techniques are nowhere near what critics are comparing it to. There's no gimmicky non-linear storytelling. No "kewl" camera work. No "hip" editing. It is not like Tsui Hark's Time&Tide with its visually-stunning camera work and dense storytelling, instead it is more akin to Ghost Dog: Way of the Samurai. Quiet, a little profound. The story is refreshingly simple but it kind of drags on in the middle, plodding to the point of predictable, it makes you wish it has one of those twists Thai TV commercials are known for in global advertising awards shows. All in all, Bangkok Dangerous is a refreshing film to see amidst the noisy action films of Hollywood and Hong Kong. But don't get misled by what's on the cover.
