Contraband
2012
**½
Director: Baltasar Kormákur
Cast: Mark Wahlberg, Kate Beckinsale, Ben Foster, Caleb Landry Jones, Giovanni Ribisi, Lukas Haas, J. K. Simmons, Diego Luna, Robert Wahlberg
Chris Farraday is an ex-smuggler gone legit who is forced to bring a shipment of counterfeit money from Panama to New Orleans when his idiot brother-in-law Andy screws up and the local drug lord threatens to kill him, Chris, his wife, and his two kids. Baltasar Kormákur's violent, foul-mouthed, and forgettable caper is a remake of the 2008 Icelandic film Reykjavík-Rotterdam, in which he starred. The scenes on the ship and in Panama are perfectly enjoyable, but the parts set in New Orleans are unconvincing or unpleasant. Giovanni Ribisi doesn't cut it as a crime boss, especially when Chris beats him up on several occasions. Kate Beckinsale, the sole female presence in the movie, appears in a thankless role as the helpless wife and mother who is repeatedly terrorised and physically abused by friend and foe alike.
