ONG BAK 2(2008)
(Directed by Tony Jaa and Panna Rittikrai)
"I guess we'll have to wait for part 3 to figure out why the hell this movie is using the "Ong Bak" title.....besides financial purposes."- Signed by MartialHorror.
Plot: A young man whose family was murdered by a corrupt official joins a bad of thieves, grows up, and decides to get revenge. Review: Tony Jaa will always be the guy who almost made it big. He was almost the next Jackie Chan or Jet Li. Maybe he will be, but I have my doubts. After his great breakthrough with “Ong Bak”, he shocked the world by starring in the disappointing “The Protector”. It’s a fun movie, but it’s also a mess. It’s to Tony Jaa what “Dragon Lord” was to Jackie Chan. I remember feeling upset when I saw this because Jaa had just squabbled his chance at international stardom. He had gotten what Jackie Chan and Jet Li hadn’t had in awhile, having one of their domestic films released theatrically in the U.S. Alas, it underperformed both critically and commercially, and martial arts films went back to obscurity. When word of “Ong Bak 2” came out, we were all excited. But it was plagued with problems from the beginning, and by the time it came out, most had forgotten about Tony Jaa. The most notable production backlash was that Tony Jaa had a nervous breakdown and vanished in the jungle. This is why I don’t think Jaa will ever be the next Jet Li or Jackie Chan. He simply does not handle the pressure well. Luckily, “Ong Bak 2” is a pretty kickass movie though, so we can always hope. Tona Jaa stars as Tien, although for the first part of the film, Tien is a kid. As the story is a strange mix of being thin and convoluted, I won’t go into detail here. Tien is the son of some noble official who is betrayed and killed. Tien barely escapes with his life but is found by slave traders. In an awesome suspense scene, Tien is literally thrown to the crocodiles and is forced to fight one to survive. During the fight, thieves overtake the slave traders and watch Tien do battle. Tien beats the crocodile and joins them, leading to a training montage where he grows up to be Tony Jaa. Tony Jaa becomes the leader of the thieves, but decides that he wants revenge so goes to kill the man who took his life away. “Ong Bak 2” showcases some of the best martial arts you will ever see. They are stylized yet brutal, and there is a variety of styles you can chose from to watch. There are Chinese style battles, Japanese style battles, Muy Tai, and much more. The stunt work is phenomenal and it all looks very real. I’d say “Ong Bak 2” is up there with “Black Belt” and “Fearless” with distributing the best fight scenes ever filmed. Jaa(or Rikkikrai) also impresses us with dazzling photography, vast set pieces and some pretty kick ass direction. They handle the suspense like masters and even show some fancy camerawork. Jaa may have been inspired by Jackie Chan and Bruce Lee in his choreography, but he is a student of Luc Besson in terms of stylish filmmaking. Hell, he even rips off a shot from “Leon: The Professional” at one point. It is a stunningly well made film overall, even rivaling the top dogs in Japan or Hong Kong. There are some notable problems. There is an overlong dance scene, a pointless inclusion of a love interest that never goes anywhere and one of the most ridiculous ‘we’ve run out of money’ endings that I’ve ever seen……Although this will be explained in “Ong Bak 3”. But beyond the story, where the film really mucks up is in its presentation of the characters. No one is fleshed out or interesting. The big shocker is Tien himself. Tien is a character with no personality whatsoever. Personally, I kind of Blame Jaa here. Jaa had enough of a character in “Ong Bak” so we could sympathize with him, but his acting in “The Protector” showed that he didn’t have much range……But here he doesn’t try outside of the fight scenes. He isn’t even acting. He’s just kicking ass. The result is that while we are dazzled by the film visually, it never makes an emotional connection. We simply do not care. But when all is said and done, will anyone watch “Ong Bak 2” for its character depth? No, we just want to watch Tony Jaa take names and kick ass, and the less name taking and the more ass kicking, the better. In this regard, you will not be disappointed. Few films have done it better, and the fact that the directing and camerawork is on the money just makes it even more sweeter. But if you want more, than “Ong Bak 2” is not for you. Personally, I think it’s better than “The Protector”, but not as good as “Ong Bak”. Violence: Rated R worthy. Pretty brutal. Nudity: None. Overall: Watch “Ong Bak 2” if you’re into kick ass fight scenes. ¾ Stars
