The Replacement Killers (1998)

Failing to kill anymore because of his conscience, a troubled hit-man seeks aid from a forger to help him get papers to China. However, the drug-lord has hired replacements to finish the job and kill the hit-man.

Director:

Antoine Fuqua

Writer:

Ken Sanzel

Stars:

Yun-Fat Chow, Mira Sorvino, Michael Rooker

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Yun-Fat Chow	...	John Lee (as Chow Yun-Fat)
Mira Sorvino	...	Meg Coburn
Michael Rooker	...	Stan 'Zeedo' Zedkov
Kenneth Tsang	...	Terence Wei
Jürgen Prochnow	...	Michael Kogan (as Jurgen Prochnow)
Til Schweiger	...	Ryker
Danny Trejo	...	Collins
Clifton Collins Jr.	...	Loco (as Clifton Gonzalez Gonzalez)
Carlos Gómez	...	Hunt (as Carlos Gomez)
Frank Medrano	...	Rawlins
Leo Lee	...	Lam
Patrick Kilpatrick	...	Pryce
Randall Duk Kim	...	Alan Chan
Andrew J. Marton	...	Stevie
Sydney Coberly	...	Sara

Storyline

John Lee is the best hitman money can buy. But when John refuses to kill because of the seven year-old son of his target, John's bosses send someone after John to kill him and then take his place in the ring of hitmen. John then teams up with Meg Coburn to help him escape these "Replacement Killers."

---

Plot Keywords:

passport | replacement | hitman | drug lord | chinatown | 

---

Taglines:

When people need to disappear, they come to see Meg. When they're about to go, they never see John coming.

---

Genres:

Action | Crime | Drama | Thriller

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong violence and for language

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Cantonese

Release Date:

6 February 1998 (USA)

Also Known As:

Assassinos Substitutos

Filming Locations:

Belmont Tunnel - 1304 West 2nd Street, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$30,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£151,464 (UK) (5 June 1998)

Gross:

£359,183 (UK) (19 June 1998)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures Corporation, Brillstein-Grey Entertainment, WCG Entertainment Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

87 min 96 min (extended cut)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital SDDS (8 channels)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Mira Sorvino speaks fluent Mandarin Chinese. Yun-Fat Chow is a Cantonese Chinese native speaker but can also speak some Mandarin. Sorvino was able to help translate for Chow who was just learning English at the time.

---

Goofs

When John Lee is about shoot his mark (the son of Stan 'Zeedo' Zedkov), the scope cover on the front of the scope is not the correct type of cover. Typically, the red buttoned scope cover is used at the rear side of the scope. Butler Creek makes these type of scope covers and the red buttoned one's are designated as "rear scope cover".

---

Quotes

Meg Coburn: [Holding gun to John's head] Now what the fuck did you get me into with Terence Wei?
John Lee: He's my patron.
Meg Coburn: Patron?
John Lee: He made it possible for me to come here.
Meg Coburn: What does he, sponsor you to play the violin?
John Lee: ...in exchange for... services.
Meg Coburn: What a nice way of saying you kill people.

---

Connections

Referenced in All the Rage (1999)

---

Soundtracks

"Rocco"
Written by Richard Fearless and Steve Hellier
Performed by Death In Vegas
Courtesy of Time Bomb Recordings / Deconstruction Limited

User Reviews

This is superb Hong Kong action stuff !!!

Wow, this movie just blew me away !!! I am a fan of the John Woo type of action movies and I must say that even he was just one of the executive producers, his mark is all over this movie!!!

The result is very good : Nicely paced action sequences, more story and emotions than in your average Hong Kong action movie (But not as much story development as in an American production, but in this genre this just isn't needed that much, it would just slow down the pace), well acted , you kinda start feeling sympathetic for the leads and you'll certainly hate these villains. This is a thrill ride from beginning till the end. And this is where I have my only point of criticism : The movie is way to short !!! 80 minutes and the credits start to roll!!! You'll almost start to beg for more... I'll best describe this movie as a cross between "Face-Off" and "The professional" from director Luc Besson. A must-see for every action movie lover.