Film Illiterate, wherein the proprietor records movies seen, and sporadic progress through assorted lists of the "best". Originally started after regretfully renting something forgettable for the third time. I've forgotten what, but never again! A tedious endeavour since 2005. Hello. 🙂
Average
The latest in the "young fighter with a heart of gold is forced by contrived circumstances to enter an underground fighting tournament" genre, it's strongly reminiscent of a Jean-Claude Van Damme movie. Expect bad acting, ridiculous villains, and a plot so anxious to get on with the fighting that everything human gets left behind.
I'm going to pick on the bad guys, mostly, because the best word for them I have is retarded. The climactic battle, for example, is against an invincible underling hopped up on performance-enhancing drugs -- it plays out something like the tobacco water sequence from Jackie Chan's The Young Master, but so deadly serious that it was impossible to take seriously. Worst of all was the grunting Vin Diesel lookalike and his furniture-only style of martial arts: he'd break one chair over Ting's head, only to pick up another, and another, and another, until forced to fall back to tables and crockery once he'd run out. At one point he attacked with a refrigerator. I wish I were joking.
The action sequences are spectacular. Tony Jaa displays amazing athleticism, and the fact that the action was achieved without stunt-doubles or special effects only adds to the adrenalin. There's a terrific tuk-tuk chase scene. It's just unfortunate that the directory is unable to let the action speak for itself. If you happen to look away during a particularly spectacular stunt, don't worry: there will be an instant replay. Not content to simply amaze, he insists on drawing attention to the means of amazement; the result is a self-conscious spectacular, its audience stuck at appreciation, never reaching engagement.