Man on Fire

***Man on Fire*** is a 2004 British-American crime thriller film.

## Synopsis

In Mexico City, a former assassin swears vengeance on those who committed an unspeakable act against the family he was hired to protect.

## Plot

In 2003, burnt-out ex-CIA (SAD/SOG) Paramilitary operations officer and former U.S. Marine Corps Force Reconnaissance officer John Creasy visits his old comrade Paul Rayburn, who runs a security firm in Mexico. Because of the extremely high rate of kidnappings in Mexico City for ransoms, wealthy businessman Samuel Ramos hires Creasy through Rayburn to guard his nine-year-old daughter "Pita". However, Samuel is having financial problems and intends to keep Creasy on only long enough to satisfy the requirements to renew his kidnap and ransom insurance on Pita.

Drinking heavily, Creasy attempts suicide with his pistol, but the cartridge fails to fire when he pulls the trigger. He calls Rayburn, who says that "a bullet always tells the truth." At first, Creasy distances himself from Pita, but soon becomes a surrogate father to the girl, allowing him to stop drinking and find purpose in life.

One day, as Creasy waits to escort Pita from a piano lesson, a group of gunmen try to kidnap her. Creasy kills four of the kidnappers, including two corrupt policemen, in a shoot out, but he is shot multiple times and collapses from his wounds, and the abductors escape with Pita. Creasy is hospitalized, but is moved to a veterinary hospital by Miguel Manzano (Giancarlo Giannini), a senior agent of the Agencia Federal de Investigación(AFI), who suspects Creasy will be killed by rogue police.

Meanwhile, the Ramoses agree to deliver a dead drop ransom of US$10 million per the instructions of "La Voz" ("The Voice"), head of the kidnapping ring. Samuel's attorney Jordan Kalfus and police lieutenant Victor Fuentes arrange for the ransom to be collected from Samuel's kidnapping insurance policy, then delivered to the kidnappers. The drop, however, is ambushed by members of "La Hermandad", a powerful crime syndicate composed of corrupt police officers, who steal the money and kill The Voice's nephew in the process. The Voice notifies the Ramoses that in retribution for this, Pita will now be lost to them forever.

Creasy leaves the hospital before fully recovering, swearing to Pita's mother Lisa that he will kill everyone involved in her daughter's abduction. Rayburn helps Creasy purchase black market firearms, a rocket-propelled grenade launcher, and explosives. Mariana Guerrero (Rachel Ticotin), a journalist investigating kidnappings, and Manzano also offer their support.

Creasy tracks down low-level operatives involved in various stages of the kidnapping, torturing each for information about other operatives, then killing them in brutal ways, eventually learning from Fuentes, who is revealed to be the "president" of "La Hermandad", that the bags they stole at the ransom drop contained only $2.5 million of actual currency while the rest was blank paper.

Creasy finds Kalfus murdered, and evidence of questionable financial dealings with Samuel. He confronts Samuel and Lisa for the truth behind the kidnapping. Samuel confesses to Creasy and Lisa that he agreed to Kalfus' plan to stage Pita's kidnapping, so he could pay off business debts he inherited from his father, keeping $5 million of the ransom for himself and splitting the rest between Kalfus and the kidnappers. He was told by Kalfus that Pita would be returned after the ransom was paid, but Fuentes, who had been promised a cut of the money by Kalfus, became greedy and betrayed him and Samuel in an attempt to take the entire ransom for himself. Samuel held Kalfus responsible for the botched drop and confesses to killing him after learning that Kalfus had known all along about Fuentes' corruption. Creasy then leaves Samuel with a pistol and the misfired round, which works for Samuel when he commits suicide.

Using the information provided by Creasy, The Voice's identity is revealed by Manzano to be Daniel Sánchez, who Mariana exposes on the front page of her newspaper. Creasy sneaks into the home of Sánchez's ex-wife and children, and is shot by his brother Aurelio (Gero Camilo), whom Creasy then captures. Creasy calls Daniel Sánchez and threatens to kill all of his family unless he gives himself up, but Sánchez reveals that Pita is still alive, and offers her in exchange for Aurelio and Creasy. He surrenders himself to Sánchez' men, after Pita is released to him. She then runs to her mother. Creasy then dies peacefully from his gunshot wounds. Daniel Sánchez is later killed by Manzano during an AFI arrest raid.