To watch Tom Yum Goong 2 is to have safe sex. It's totally risk free.
Director Prachya Pinkaew have, to reach a bigger audience, made a sequel to Tom Yum Goong that's totally meaningless. I'm not talking about the pointless storyline, that's okay for me. It's an action movie. But non-characters doing nothing except running from green screens is hardly not what I think Tony Jaa represents.
Tony Jaa and Prachya Pinkaew desperately trying to emulate the American way of making action films and totally forgets what we first loved about Jaa, the willingness to go that extra step. Just like Jackie Chan in his youth, just like Iko Uwais in Indonesia nowadays.
Maybe Jaa is too occupied with world domination preparing for Fast & Furious 7 to actually care of what made him a star from the beginning? I don't deny there's a few fight scenes here and there that's very good. It's competent people fighting - not always Jaa himself - but nothing dares to stand out. It's laziness.
Personally I never bothered with cheesy CGI, because story is the most important thing. But in a movie like Tom Yum Goong 2 where story is more transparent than Vladimir Putin's sexual preferences what's left is stuntmen connected to wires fighting in a green screen room made to look like it have burning walls.
Even if I love and respect Jaa, this is so far from what I want from him to do I actually think I'm just gonna give a shit about every upcoming home he has in the pipeline. Why should I give him money if he only sees a fat bank account than true martial arts.
Tom Yum Goong 2 (aka The Protector 2) is lazy, stupid, empty and non-spectacular. If you want to watch new, good martial arts from 2013, check out Ninja 2 or Man of Thai Chi - yes, even Keanu Reeves directs superior martial arts films than former master Prachya Pinkaew. I hope someone can save Tony Jaa. Or maybe it's time for a new action hero from Thailand?
I'm open for suggestions.
"Maybe Jaa is too occupied with world domination preparing for Fast & Furious 7 to actually care of what made him a star from the beginning?"
You forgot about that strange breakdown he had, hubris according to some, then Jaa wanted to become a monk.....weird stuff, personally I think he crashed, burned.
"Even if I love and respect Jaa, this is so far from what I want from him to do I actually think I'm just gonna give a shit about every upcoming home he has in the pipeline. Why should I give him money if he only sees a fat bank account than true martial arts."
I haven´t seen this one......so I can´t say.
"If you want to watch new, good martial arts from 2013, check out Ninja 2 or Man of Thai Chi - yes, even Keanu Reeves directs superior martial arts films than former master Prachya Pinkaew."
Oh.....Man of Tai Chi(2013)I still haven´t seen that one, but I will.
"Or maybe it's time for a new action hero from Thailand? I'm open for suggestions."
A champion will come....hahhahhahahh....yeah, somebody new or maybe.....Jaa will surprise us all.
Good review and thanks Fred.
Posted by: Megatron | January 19, 2014 at 17:13