Brokedown Palace (1999)

User Rating:

6.1/10   

Director:

Jonathan Kaplan

Writers (WGA):

Adam Fields (story) &
David Arata (story) ...

Release Date:

13 August 1999 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

What is your dream? How far would you go? Who could you trust?

Plot:

Two women are arrested for smuggling while vacationing in Thailand.

Plot Keywords:

Jail | Best Friend | Sacrifice | Kickboxing | Defense Lawyer

Cast

Claire Danes	...	Alice Marano
Kate Beckinsale	...	Darlene Davis
Bill Pullman	...	Hank Greene
Jacqueline Kim	...	Yon Greene
Lou Diamond Phillips	...	Roy Knox
Daniel Lapaine	...	Nick Parks
Tom Amandes	...	Doug Davis
Aimee Graham	...	Beth Ann Gardener
John Doe	...	Bill Marano
Kay Tong Lim	...	Chief Detective Jagkrit
Beulah Quo	...	Guard Velie
Henry O	...	Emissary to Crown
Bahni Turpin	...	Jamaican Prisoner
Amanda De Cadenet	...	English Prisoner
Intira Jaroenpura	...	Prisoner Shub

Also Known As:

Two Girls (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for brief strong language, drug related material and some violent content.

Runtime:

100 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Thai

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Iceland:12 | Singapore:NC-16 (DVD rating) | Singapore:PG (theatrical rating) | Finland:K-11 (2005) | Finland:K-12 (2000) | Taiwan:R-12 | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Chile:14 | France:U | Germany:12 (w) | New Zealand:M | Norway:11 | Peru:14 | South Korea:12 | Sweden:11 | UK:12 | USA:PG-13 (certificate #36385) | Philippines:PG-13

Filming Locations:

Bangkok, Thailand

Company:

Adam Fields Productions

Trivia:

Filmed in the Philippines due to the unfavorable portrayal of Thailand. This involved converting a mental institute to the prison and changing street signs from English to Thai.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: At the end of the tape that Alice sends to Hank, the tape visibly stops before the last few sentences of her narrative are heard.

Quotes:

[first lines]
'Yankee' Hank Green: I scheduled the hearing for the Burmese.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "HBO First Look: Brokedown Palace (#6.7)" (1999)

Soundtrack:

Fingers (Original Mix)

Worth my cash.

I saw this film at a store in the cheap section. I actually vividly remembered seeing the commercials and trailer for it years ago. I thought "What the hey' and bought it, basically because the plot sounded interesting and Claire Danes has always been someone of talent in my eyes (this was also before I became a huge Kate Beckinsale fan).

So it's about two girls who sneak off to a vacation in Bangkok, get busted for narcotics (which they are innocent of) and then are sent to a Thailand prison. The film follows what will happen to them and at times questions their innocence.

Both Claire Danes and Kate Beckinsale give great performances, and the plot of this film wraps itself up unconventionally, and raises some nice moral discussion questions.

I think this is a solid good film, but there could have been some improvements. It could have been longer...it would've helped to solidify these characters and more insight into the politics of Thailand's justice system would've helped.

Nevertheless, other than that, it's a good film with some great performances.

P.S. For all you pop-culture junkies be on the lookout for a two-minute role by Paul Walker. I didn't even notice him the first time I saw the film.