Man on Fire

Man on Fire is a film from 2004 starring Denzel Washington and Dakota Fanning. It takes place in Latin America and revolves around the frequent kidnappings that have happened there. The movie starts off by stating that every 60 minutes, someone gets kidnapped, and out of that number, 70 percent of the victims do not survive. 

The main character, Walter Creasy (Denzel Washington) is a retired special operations assassin who worked for the government to counter terrorism. He lives in Mexico City and spends his days consumed by his alcoholism. Because of the frequent kidnappings that happen, many wealthy families in Mexico City are forced to hire bodyguards for their children. 

Creasy is appointed by his friend to be a bodyguard for a little girl from a wealthy family by the name of Pita (Dakota Fanning). She is a sweet girl who means well and tries tirelessly to become friends with her new protector. Locked in his own world of flashbacks and alcohol, Creasy refuses. Soon, however, Pita’s charm cuts through Creasy’s loneliness, and he becomes her biggest ally. In turn, she gives Creasy a reason to live again. Things take a turn for the worst, when Pita gets kidnapped on the way back from her piano lesson, stripping Creasy of his newfound hope. After it becomes apparent that the local police are connected to the kidnappings, Creasy reverts to his old ways. He sets out to kill each and every one of the people involved. Ultimately, Creasy makes the decision to surrender himself in exchange for Pita being returned, and after a heart-wrenching goodbye to Pita, the kidnappers take him away to be killed.