In 2008, Icelandic filmmaker and actor Baltasar Kormakur produced and starred in that country's acclaimed thriller, "Reykjavik-Rotterdam." The film got Hollywood's attention, and with Kormakur back on board -- this time as director -- we now have the English-language remake "Contraband."

Mark Wahlberg stars as Chris, a renowned former smuggler of most anything, except drugs. (He was a criminal with limits.) The ex-thief now runs his own home security company and is a happily married family man, with his wife played by Kate Beckinsale. He decides to go on one last job to settle the debt of his younger brother (Caleb Landry Jones of "X-Men: First Class") who has incurred the wrath of drug dealers. The background of his brother's dilemma is explained in the movie's beautifully-shot opening sequence, complete with police helicopters descending through the New Orleans night sky to the cargo ship carrying the contraband.

Chris' plan is to take a job on another freighter, sail to Panama, and return with a load of counterfeit cash. He tells his worried wife, "Nothing's gonna happen," which means of course everything will soon start falling apart.

Wahlberg is surrounded by a first-rate cast. Giovanni Ribisi ("Saving Private Ryan" and "Avatar") often plays characters who are anything but imposing, but here he's absolutely chilling as the tattoo-covered drug dealer pressuring Wahlberg's family. J.K. Simmons from "Juno" and those Farmers Insurance ads plays the ship's hard-nosed captain, while Ben Foster ("The Messenger") portrays the smuggler's conflicted best friend. Just a footnote: Lukas Haas -- the kid from the Harrison Ford film "Witness" -- has a supporting role as a reluctant participant in the whole scheme.

A large piece of the story takes place in Panama City, a stunning but rarely used location for movies, which is wonderfully utilized by the filmmakers. It's here where the movie's violence starts to really escalate with a body count that rises dramatically. Diego Luna is excellent as a local crime boss who forces Whalberg into doing yet another job he'd rather not take on.

Director Kormakur keeps everything moving at a nearly frantic pace, with plenty of tension aided by lots of hand-held camera work. The film never drags as everyone seems to be racing against the clock. Where the movie suffers, however, is with the script by Aaron Guzikowski. The script is his first produced screenplay and the logic of the story starts to unravel during the last fifteen minutes with so much happening that defies believability.

What's most troubling however is the seemingly disregard that Wahlberg's character has for the death and mayhem his actions have caused to a number of innocent people. There's no effort on his part to make anything right, and the movie ends with him further benefiting from another theft. There's not even a hint that maybe he'd return what doesn't belong to him.

"Contraband" delivers for the most part as an action movie, but the lack of morality might leave a bad taste with some audience members.