'Forgiveness is between them and God. It is my job to arrange the meeting.'

Rating: Null/10 (3 August 2006)

Denzel Washington is a sometimes sober, former assassin "Creasy" living in Mexico City. One of the big businesses there is kidnapping of family members of wealthy families for ransom. A graphic says that 70% of those kidnapped do not survive. I don't know if that is a real figure, or one made up for the movie's story.
Creasy's friend Rayburn (Christopher Walken) convinces him to take a job as bodyguard of 9 year old Pita (Dakota Fanning), hoping it will help Creasy find some meaning in life. Creasy takes it, but makes it clear "it is just a job" and doesn't want to warm up to Pita when she tries to be friendly.
So, as bodyguard he drives her to and from a gated private school and generally sees to it she is safe. However, all does not go as planned about mid-way into the 2+ hour movie and that is where the story turns. This becomes a revenge movie and, for those who enjoy revenge, a pretty good one.
Marc Anthony is fine as Samuel, Pita's father, but his role turns out to be minor. Radha Mitchell is even better as Lisa, Pita's mom. Even Mickey Rourke has a brief but important part as the family lawyer Jordan.
SPOILERS FOLLOW. Creasy and Pita are ambushed with the help of crooked off-duty cops, Creasy is shot and almost dead, Pita is kidnapped. When the $10Million is transferred other rogue cops intercept it and in the aftermath all assume Pita has been killed. Creasy had in fact warmed up to Pita, and became a "man on fire" with revenge for her death, systematically searching down and killing those in the network. But he finds out Pita is in fact alive, and that her own dad was behind her kidnapping, along with his lawyer, as a way to collect on the kidnapping insurance and pay off debts. Dad ends up shooting himself when the plot is exposed, many bad cops get killed, and in the end Creasy has to trade himself for Pita, and he dies from wounds anyway.