Ong-Bak (2003): No stunt doubles no computer images no strings attached! When the head of a statue sacred to a village is stolen a dutiful but endearingly naive young martial artist is charged to go to the big city and finds himself taking on the underworld to retrieve it... Having drawn incredible comparisons to Bruce Lee and an early Jackie Chan Thai sensation Tony Jaa bursts onto the scene! Amazingly athletic not to mention charismatic Tony Jaa refuses to countenance the use of props (yes that's real glass barbed wire and metal spikes!) wire enhancement... and faked blows. What full contact you see is most definitely what you get! Added to this is a gleefully choreographed chase on the highways of Bangkok involving a fleet of tuk-tuk vehicles (the three-wheeled taxi iconic to Thailand) knowing location photography (visitors to the capital will recognise Khao San Road and the exterior of top nightclub hangout Suzy's Pub) and most of all an affecting story of one man's struggle to uphold village traditions against Western modernisation. Warrior King (2005): The Ong-Bak team take martial arts on film to a whole new level! Two years in the making the second most expensive film in Thai history and with several seriously battered and bruised stuntmen into the bargain Warrior King once again is the perfect showcase for the talents of Tony Jaa. The life of young martial arts master Kham (Tony Jaa) is turned upside down when an international mafia syndicate based in Australia capture his two prize elephants and smuggle them to Sydney. Distraught that the animals reared as a symbol of his devotion to the King of Thailand and due to be presented to the monarch Kham is prompted to venture into a foreign land for the very first time. Rescuing the animals is no mean feat. Despite the assistance of Sergeant Mark (Petchtai Wongkamlao) a Thai police officer based in Australia and Pla (Bongkoj Khongmalai) a Thai girl sold into modern day slavery Kham faces an incredible challenge. The ruthless gang is headed by Madame Rose (Xing Jing) whose deadly henchmen include a Vietnamese thief (Johnny Nguyen) and the hulking 7' tall behemoth TK (Nathan Jones)... If you think you know what to expect from the Ong-Bak triumvirate of director Prachya Pinkaew star Tony Jaa and stunt co-ordinator Panna Rittikrai then think again! Plot necessarily takes a back-seat to this delirious example of extreme Muay Thai cinema the highlight of which must include a 4 minute(!) unbroken fight sequence in which Kham battles his way through the four floors of the Tom Yum Goong restaurant. No cuts no faked blows no letup in the action! [show more]
Every so often when I choose to venture out into the real world in search of a cool adventure Stand By Me style, I am often treated to a number of billboards of gargantuan proportions. Each one blaring the warning of a new movie that will soon grace our cinema screens. Now for the most part they usually contain one of three things. Number one is the actor/actress is usually dominating the billboard in some sort of unique pose. The second common occurrence regarding these billboards is the inclusion of the star ratings the films have amassed in their time in the press. Movies really love to gloat about some of the stars they have picked up and to show their pride they place these stars right next to the big picture of the actor/actress. Finally to top it all off you have the tagline or a quote somewhere near the bottom of the billboard that is usually something witty or intelligent. The favourite one to use for action movies is somewhere along the lines of - 'Non-stop action' or 'Pulsating action that will leave you in a sweat', you get the idea. For the most part these are exaggerated white lies. 'Pulsating action' usually constitutes to the fact that the movie has a car chase, and a couple of bullets thrown in for good measure. However in the case of both Ong Bak and Warrior King, the claim of breathtaking action is not only true, but perhaps an understatement.
I will take it in turns to discuss each film individually. Not an incredibly difficult task as each film follows a similar plot. But in the case of these films it is not the plot that sets it apart. First film up for discussion is Ong Bak.
Ong Bak stars Tony Jaa as Ting; the newly crowned top athlete and fighter of his village Ban Nong Pradu found in the Northeast of Thailand. The village has been built on respect and tradition. It is a poor village that has very little to their name, however they are incredibly grateful for the Buddha named Ong Bak that lies in the heart of the village. One night the head of the Buddha is stolen and it falls to Ting to rescue this sacred image. Now on paper it sounds incredibly easy to find a Buddha head, but on his journey Ting meets a number of different characters. Some who wish to help, and others who wish to see the young Ting crumble and crack in his quest. Ting's cousin Humlae played by Petchtai Wongkamlao is one such character. He provides some very funny scenes and is a great addition to the cast, but the films touches of comedy are not where the film excels. Where it does excel is in the action. In modern cinema there has been a movement towards CGI in films. And in the martial arts genre a new love has been found in wire fu. Ong Bak strips itself clean from all the flamboyance and complexities and goes back to basics. This could have gone one of two ways. It could have fell flat and looked washed against films like Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. A film which has shown just how intricate a fighting scene could become with wire work. Thankfully Ong Bak does not fall in this category of the mundane, but goes onto to amaze the senses in a barbaric but elegant fashion. The fighting scenes within this film as the old cliché says leave you breathless. And believe me there are a lot of fighting scenes in this film, but what a joy they are to behold.
Before moving on it is important to note that when discussing martial arts films and the talents that are contained within them, there are vast arrays of names that are thrown around. However when I think of the best martial arts talents and the films they have produced, I think of two names - Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan. Exceptional talents that were, and still are today incredible performers and entertainers. Bruce Lee for me is the ultimate star in regards to martial arts films. Not only could he perform to an incredibly high standard in front of the camera, his grasp and determination of martial arts was just awe inspiring.
Back to these films, it is clear that Tony Jaa is without doubt a fantastic talent. In both these films he has in my mind cemented himself as a world class martial arts star up there with both Bruce Lee and his hero Jackie Chan. He may not be the greatest actor in the world yet, but the beauty and heart shown through his martial arts is absolutely outstanding. Acting talents can be taught, and I have no doubt Jaa will improve over the years in this area, it is his immaculate drive and enthusiasm for the beauty that is martial arts that really sets him apart. In your average action movie you will get a little scene where a couple of punches and kicks are thrown and it will probably keep you gripped for however long it is on screen. Jaa has the ability to not only keep you gripped on the action but he has the immense ability to create fights that are almost balletic. And it is a surreal experience to watch such brutality be partnered together with such beauty.
In The Warrior King we begin to see the progression of Tony Jaa. His bring more martial arts styles to the table, and brings a slightly darker side to his story telling. Jaa plays Khan in this tale and instead of tracking down a stolen Buddha head it's a pair of stolen elephants Khan must find. The Warrior King is more of the same, but with the inclusion of some scenes spliced with some CGI, however there is one scene that will stick with a viewer for many, many weeks after the film finishes. If anyone reading has seen the film then they will have a rough idea of what scene I am talking about. But for those out of the loop the scene focuses on Khan making his way up a four story building in an attempt to rescue his elephants. As guard after guard attempts to tackle the man that cannot be stopped the camera follows in one continuous take. There have been some brilliant and iconic long takes in the history of cinema, from the opening shot of Touch of Evil and the way into the twentieth first century with the corridor scene in Oldboy. This scene is up there with the best of them and shows just how technically brilliant Tony Jaa can be. It really needs to be seen to be believed. For the four or so minutes it last your eyeballs are just glued to the screen, with bated breath you watch as Tony Jaa scales this tremendous building, punching and kicking his way to the top in bursts of precision and poise.
Enough about the films, the final question of the night is as follows - Which movie is better? Well for me I have to say Warrior King just edges this battle of best. However, both movies are absolutely bone tingling brilliant and really need to be seen if you are in any way a martial arts fan. As mentioned in the review, they don't have the greatest or strongest plots you're likely to find in cinema, but in regards to action they are unsurpassed. For such a small price for two great pieces of work it would be wrong not to grab them with open arms.
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A boxed brace of films starring Thailand's martial arts king, Tony Jaa. As a youngster in rural Thailand, Jaa grew up on a steady diet of Jackie Chan, Bruce Lee and Jet Li but today he has become one of their number. At just 30 years of age, Jaa has already starred in a list of martial arts classics. In 'Ong Bak' (2003) the head of a village's sacred statue is stolen and young Ting (Tony Raa) is selected by the villagers to travel to Bangkok and rescue it. Raised by the monks of the temple, Ting was taught the ancient martial art of muay thai but forbidden to use it in combat. When Ting enters the seedy underbelly of Bangkok in search of the sacred relic, however, he's forced to unleash the martial arts beast and dispatch an endless parade of evil goons before his village is destroyed by drought. In 'Warrior King' (2005) the life of young martial arts master Kham (Jaa) is turned upside down when Australian criminals capture his two prize elephants and smuggle them to Sydney. Distraught that the animals, due to be presented to the revered King Of Thailand have been abducted, Kham is prompted to venture into a foreign land for the very first time. Rescuing the animals proves no mean feat. Despite the assistance of Sergeant Mark (Petchtai Wongkamlao), a Thai police officer based in Australia, and Pla (Bongkoj Khongmalai) a Thai girl sold into modern day slavery, Kham faces an incredible challenge.
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