Now Playing: (2003, Prachya Pinkaew) [seen in theatre]
Let me describe a scene from ONG-BAK that pretty much sums it up for me: Tony Jaa, playing the film's protagonist, is fighting a big white guy, and the crowd is pumped. High-stakes betting, loud cheering, and all that. So when the fight begins, the contestants circle each other, and Tony Jaa knocks the other guy out with a kick. Fight's over. The movie's like that- lots of anticipation, but despite the obvious skill on display the end result isn't as exciting as it ought to be. Now, I don't know much about Muay-Thai martial arts, but either (a) it doesn't have very many distinctive moves, or (b) the film's fight choreographer wasn't particularly imaginative (I'm leaning toward the second option). But the main problem is the fact that no one is sure what the film ought to be- while the director is sure he's making a Jackie Chan movie (where comedic derring-do is king) while his star fancies himself an heir to Bruce Lee. Watching ONG-BAK, I'm inclined to agree with the director, as Tony Jaa isn't able to make his character enough of a badass to make the Lee comparison stick, and because he seems to be so much more comfortable with the stunts than he is with his fists of alleged fury that the fights suffer in comparison to the extended chase sequences. Perhaps if he can realize where his talents truly lie, Jaa can become the martial arts superstar many people believe he's primed to be.
Posted by hkoreeda
at 12:10 AM EST
