Bangkok Dangerous is a remake of the Pang Brothers’ 1999 film of the same name, and having not seen the original I can only guess that it doesn’t suffer from what ultimately keeps the American version from scaling exciting heights — and that is the wait for Nicolas Cage to do something. He’s in Weather Man mode here as Joe, a coldly mechanical assassin who never leaves a trace of his killings, even if that means taking care of his contacts. We begin in Prague but are quickly taken to what seems to be the hitman’s last job, a four-victim blowout in Bangkok. He quickly hires a helper named Kong (Shahkrit Yamnarm), and after some initial displays of loyalty, begins to train him.

It’s an abrupt switch that’s hard to decipher, but not as odd as seeing Joe romancing a deaf/mute pharmacy employee. These two relationships are balanced by action pieces, as Joe disposes of his victims with the help of helped by Kong. It’s presented in a clinical, seedy style that gives the whole film a dreary feel. Cage’s perfomance is jumpy — there seems to be a personality ready to burst out of him, but it never materializes. His attempts at playing the lone wolf to perfection continue to elude him.