An arms dealer confronts the morality of his work as he is being chased by an INTERPOL Agent.An arms dealer confronts the morality of his work as he is being chased by an INTERPOL Agent.An arms dealer confronts the morality of his work as he is being chased by an INTERPOL Agent.
- Awards
- 2 wins & 3 nominations
- Irina Orlov
- (as Shake Toukhmanian)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaAccording to writer and director Andrew Niccol, the filmmakers worked with actual gunrunners in the making of this movie. The tanks lined up for sale were real, and belonged to a Czech arms dealer, who had to have them back to sell to another country. They used a real stockpile of over three thousand AK-47s, because it was cheaper than getting prop guns.
- GoofsWhen narrating the story about early stages of his business in 1980s, Yuri Orlov mentions that he has carried several passports at that time, including the Ukrainian passport. Ukraine didn't get to issue its own passports until 1992.
- Quotes
Yuri Orlov: [Narrating] Of all the weapons in the vast Soviet arsenal, nothing was more profitable than Avtomat Kalashnikova model of 1947, more commonly known as the AK-47, or Kalashnikov. It's the world's most popular assault rifle. A weapon all fighters love. An elegantly simple 9 pound amalgamation of forged steel and plywood. It doesn't break, jam, or overheat. It will shoot whether it's covered in mud or filled with sand. It's so easy, even a child can use it; and they do. The Soviets put the gun on a coin. Mozambique put it on their flag. Since the end of the Cold War, the Kalashnikov has become the Russian people's greatest export. After that comes vodka, caviar, and suicidal novelists. One thing is for sure, no one was lining up to buy their cars.
- Crazy creditsBefore the end credits roll a message appears stating that the top 5 sellers of arms in the world are China, Russia, the UK, USA, and France - all of whom make up the permanent five members of the UN security council.
- Alternate versionsFor the US DVD release the aspect ratio of the film was changed to 1,78:1. A few weeks after the initial release the DVD was reissued with the film in its original aspect ratio of 2,35:1.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Making a Killing: Inside the International Arms Trade (2006)
- SoundtracksFor What It's Worth
Written by Stephen Stills
Performed by Buffalo Springfield
Courtesy of Elektra Entertainment Group
By arrangement with Warner Strategic Marketing
This is a movie based on actual events (that means it's a movie that has some truth to it). From what I heard the director made quite a bit of research of the gun running world when creating this movie.
This movie takes a look at the gun running business through the story of one particular trafficker played by Cage. It goes through two decades of wars & conflicts and how the business and politics of gun running works. Cage is the middle man in that world, who navigates through it very professionally and coolly. Cage's character is made to be likable, but not a hero by any means.
Many people may think that this movie depicts certain cultures and races in a bad light, but if you know anything about history and keep up to date with world events you'll understand the truth behind these portrayals.
The movie is interesting because it is as close as to a realistic look to arms trafficking as Hollywood could produce without making a documentary. It's refreshing because of this.
I hope people see this movie because it very much shows the truth behind how wars are supplied and how the richest nations in the world have done this for the ultimate prize that thing that makes the world go round Money.
The movie as a whole is produced very well and the acting and cinematography is up to par with the type of film it is (as mentioned before, don't expect a big production Hollywood action flick).
Don't expect your typical Hollywood ending here either.
(I'd compare this movie with Buffalo Soldiers (2001) with Joaquin Phoenix)
- sirjonxo
- Sep 15, 2005
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Languages
- Also known as
- Trùm Chiến Tranh
- Filming locations
- Bozi Dar aerodrome, Bozi Dar, Czech Republic(Ukrainian ammunition depot)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $50,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $24,149,632
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $9,390,144
- Sep 18, 2005
- Gross worldwide
- $72,617,068
- Runtime2 hours 2 minutes
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 2.35 : 1