Skin Trade (2014)

Skin Trade is a 2014 American action thriller film directed by Ekachai Uekrongtham. It stars Dolph Lundgren, Tony Jaa, Michael Jai White, and Ron Perlman. Lundgren wrote the film with Gabriel Dowrick and Steven Elder, while John Hyams performed uncredited script revisions. The film centers around New Jersey police detective Nick Cassidy, as he travels to Asia intent on killing the man who murdered his family, mobster Viktor Dragovic. Development started in 2007 after Lundgren read a news report about a group of girls being smuggled into the United States from Mexico. The girls were left in a vehicle along the border and, trapped inside,

they all died of heat stroke and suffocation. Skin Trade had a $9 million production budget, and was shot over 50 days in Canada and Thailand. The film premiered at the American Film Market on November 7, 2014. This was followed by a limited theatrical release, starting on April 9, 2015, in the United Arab Emirates, and succeeded by Thailand (on April 23), Malaysia (on April 30), and the United States (on May 8). The film grossed $384 000 at the worldwide box office, but received mostly negative reviews; particular criticism was aimed at Jaa’s fluency in English, as well as the film’s approach to the topic of human trafficking.

Plot.

In the prologue, a Cambodian girl leaves her village for Bangkok. Upon arriving, she is drugged, kidnapped and sold into the “skin trade” (human trafficking). In Newark, New Jersey, Nick Cassidy, a Newark Police Department detective, discovers that Viktor Dragovic, a Serbian mobster, is in New Jersey. Meanwhile, in Bangkok, detective Tony Vitayakul attempts to buy a Thai girl from a group of human traffickers. When his cover is blown, he subdues the traffickers and frees the girl. He collects information regarding the ship used to transport trafficked girls, its destination, and that Dragovic will be there to receive the shipment. Cassidy and his superior officer, Captain Costello, brief a group of police officers on Dragovic, revealing he is a major player in human trafficking worldwide. As the ship carrying Dragovic’s container approaches the US, Cassidy and his men prepare to intercept it at the dock. When the ship arrives, Dragovic discovers the trafficked women have died during the transport. The ship’s captain is held responsible, tortured and shot in the head. A shootout erupts as the police move in. Cassidy chases Dragovic and his youngest son Andre.

He fatally shoots Andre in self-defense and Dragovic is arrested. While in custody, Dragovic arranges to have Cassidy’s family murdered and his house blown up. Cassidy’s wife and daughter are killed while Cassidy survives, despite being shot in the back. Captain Costello and Reed, an FBI agent, visit Cassidy in the hospital. They tell him Dragovic fled the US after being bailed. After they leave, Cassidy steals an opiate drug and clothing before leaving the hospital unnoticed. He gets his guns and goes to the restaurant of Dragovic’s attorney. After forcing the attorney to reveal Dragovic’s whereabouts, Cassidy shoots him and blows up the restaurant. In Cambodia, Senator Khat warns Dragovic that unless he leaves the country immediately, he will be arrested and extradited to the US. Dragovic blackmails the Senator into giving him two weeks to put his affairs in order and flee.

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Development and writing.

Lundgren started researching human trafficking in 2005. He claimed there were “20 million slaves in the world”, and that human trafficking was a “$20 billion industry”; the world’s “second largest” illegal trafficking enterprise (as of 2015). He started developing Skin Trade in 2007, after reading a news report about a group of girls being smuggled into the United States from Mexico. The girls were left in a vehicle along the border; trapped inside and with no means of escape, they all died of heat stroke and suffocation. Lundgren, who had two young daughters at the time, felt the story of human trafficking “had to be told”. He empathized with the victims, saying: “these people are physically humiliated [and] psychologically abused to have no self worth, sort of like [how] I used to feel”.

Casting.

Originally, Lundgren planned on playing a supporting role, with a more famous actor in the lead. He also considered directing the film, but decided against it, as he desired to learn more about producing. In 2013, Lundgren announced the casting of Tony Jaa, in the role of Tony Vitayakul; and Ekachai Uekrongtham as the director. Lundgren chose Uekrongtham after being impressed with his film, Beautiful Boxer. He contacted him through a mutual friend in Los Angeles, and in mid-2013, they arranged to meet in the city. While he had previously turned down scripts offered to him for international markets, Uekrongtham found Skin Trade “riveting”.

Filming.

Filming began on February 2, 2014, in Thailand. Skin Trade was shot over 50 days: 43 filming in Thailand, and four filming in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. In Thailand, filming locations included: Suvarnabhumi Airport, the Min Buri District, the Siam Kempinski Hotel, a rice mill, a leather-bleaching factory, and a century-old mansion. Filming was briefly disrupted by public protests relating to the Thai political crisis. To avoid any further interference, the cast and crew had to travel early to get through the traffic and to the set on time. Most of the film was shot on location, but some scenes were filmed at Baanrig Studios. Skin Trade was the first film to be shot in English by an organization based in Asia (outside of Hong Kong) for an international theatrical release.

Marketing, Home media.

A teaser poster was released in 2013, followed by a teaser trailer on March 26, 2014. On April 7 of the same year, Lundgren promoted Skin Trade on CNN. He appeared live in the studio and discussed the film with news anchor Richard Quest. At the 2014 Cannes Film Festival, Hyde Park International presented potential buyers with nine minutes of footage. Magnolia Pictures acquired the U.S. distribution rights on February 20, 2015, and announced they were releasing the film through their subsidiary label, Magnet Releasing. The film’s official trailer was released on March 12, 2015. Skin Trade was released through Video-on-Demand on April 23, 2015. On August 25, Magnet Releasing distributed the film on Blu-ray and DVD. In the United States, the film was given an R rating by the Motion Picture Association of America, while in the United Kingdom, it was issued a 15 rating by the British Board of Film Classification. As of April 21, 2017, Skin Trade has grossed $1.94 million in domestic home video sales.

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Box office.

The film debuted in the United Arab Emirates on April 9, 2015. It peaked in fifth place at the box office, and made $79,286 from 19 screenings ($4,173 per theater). The film debuted in the United States on May 8, 2015, making $162 (from one theater showing) during its opening weekend. It remained in the one theater for a second week, grossing a further $510. By the end of its third and final week of release in the US, Skin Trade grossed a total of $1,242 at the domestic box office, bringing the film’s entire theatrical gross to $384,026.

Cast:

Dolph Lundgren as Detective Nick Cassidy
Tony Jaa as Detective Tony Vitayakul
Michael Jai White as Agent Reed, a corrupt FBI agent working for Dragovic
Ron Perlman as Viktor Dragovic
Mike Dopud as Goran Dragovic
David Westerman as Ivan Dragovic
Leo Rano as Janko Dragovic
Michael G. Selby as Andre Dragovic
Celina Jade as Min, Tony’s girlfriend
Peter Weller as Captain Costello
Tasya Teles as Rosa Cassidy
Chloe Babcook as Sofia Cassidy

Skin Trade (2014) Biography, Plot, Casting, Filming, Box office, Trailer.