Ong-bak 3 - L'ultime combat

Tony Jaa is an incredible athletic specimen, and his last three films – "Ong Bak" (2003), "Tom Yum Goong" (2005), and "Ong Bak 2" (2008) – were fantastic exhibitions of buttkicking. Considering the production hell that "Ong Bak 2" endured, it seemed like Jaa could do no wrong. But then something unexpected happened. He pulled a Dave Chapelle on us and stuck a big middle finger at his fans. Instead of sucking it up like a man and simply enduring the last few years on his contract, Jaa chose the crybaby route and ran like a child into the woods. I was still looking forward to "Ong Bak 3" (2010) despite the horrible online buzz it has been getting, because deep down inside I was hoping that Jaa would give us one last exhibition of glory before taking a (hopefully) temporary vacation for the next few years. Unfortunately, he left us a fluff piece that's merely watchable.

This picks up immediately after "Ong Bak 2" ends, with Jaa being captured, tortured and beaten. Much of the first hour is dedicated to his rescue and recovery, which might get on the bad side of action junkies but this part of the film is actually decent despite a weak storyline (pretty environments and good scoring do help to hold one's interest). The script basically sucks, and is actually a downgrade from "Ong Bak 2" (which at least had a number of cool characters and scenarios). I seriously question the whole "king curse" element that was introduced in this film. I guess it could have worked in theory, but the execution leaves much to be desired.

Of course, no one watches Jaa's films for award-winning scriptwriting, which means that the fighting represents the one major element that simply must work in order to earn entertainment value. One thing the viewer will notice in "Ong Bak 3" is that the degree of difficulty of the martial arts choreography is not nearly as high as Jaa's previous works. There's quite literally not one awe-inspiring exchange in the entire film, and it's obvious that Jaa was sleepwalking through this because his presence feels superfluous. It's no exaggeration to say that any B-grade Thai action star (e.g., Mike B., etc.) could have been inserted into the lead role and the film would have lost very little. The choreography itself is too simplistic to be memorable, and for the first time ever I felt like Jaa's take downs got repetitive after a while.

Now that's not to say that the fighting completely stinks. "Mediocre" for Tony Jaa is "good" for everyone else, which means that the action in "Ong Bak 3" is engaging enough to be moderately entertaining. One big blunder though was having Dan Chupong carry the load as the lead antagonist. It irritates me that people are talking this guy up like he's gonna be the next big thing when in reality he's only slightly above average in his athleticism and skill. "Dynamite Warrior" (2006) was terrible and "Born To Fight" (2004) was entertaining more for its other half dozen protagonists and unintentional hilarity than Chupong's physical skills. His punches and kicks look incredibly flimsy and weak when captured in wide camera angles and he doesn't have much in terms of diverse moves. If you want to rely on someone while Jaa is gone, check out Indonesian action star Iko Uwais – who recently gave us the impressive feat of awesomeness known as "Merantau" (2009).

"Ong Bak 3" comes with a very reserved, marginal recommendation. In reality it's on the same level as something like "The Sanctuary" (2009) or "The Bodyguard" (2004) and comes off like a poor man's version of "Ong Bak 2." Jaa's typical critics – you know, the people with awful taste in action films – will have a field day lambasting this one while giving it a 1/10 rating. Jaa's fans will be justifiably underwhelmed, and could probably skip it entirely without missing much of anything.

Viewers seem to absolutely hate this third film in the series. It certainly isn't great, but I didn't think it was terrible, and if you sat through the second one, which ends on a cliffhanger, you'll definitely want to see this one. The story is incoherent, but so was the second one. Jaa, having been captured, is tortured to near death. He's saved in some confusing way. The big problem with this one is that there's a long section in the middle where Jaa's being healed and then trained. The martial arts sequences are entirely absent for much of the film, and obviously that's the only reason anyone showed up. Thankfully, when they do re-enter the movie, they're awesome enough where it almost makes up for the boring parts. Honestly, one can be perfectly happy sticking with the first Ong-Bak and The Protector. The plots of those two films amounted to "Hey, the bad guys stole something from me, now I'm going to go get it (while kicking the ass of everyone who gets in my way), whether or not my pants are on fire." Ong-Bak 2 & 3, which Jaa directed, wrote and choreographed (he's most successful in the latter aspect), have a mytho-historic epic plot line that is as confusing as it is unnecessary.

Picking up directly where we last left off in that cliffhanger ending in Part 2 after an opening credits montage to quickly jog our memory, we see how Tien gets systematically broken down by the many minions of his nemesis Lord Rajasena (Sarunyoo Wongkrachang). Here's where I think the Thai audience have the last laugh with their recent censor ratings. Ong Bak 3 is rating an 18+ there, and over here, we got by with an NC16. Not so bad I thought to myself, until the first 5 minutes saw a number of badly executed butchering of the film, that I balked. We should have gone M18 to be in line, and perhaps those torture scenes would have survived the censors scissors. But no thanks to the distributors who decided to try and make this film appeal to a larger Jaa audience. Surprisingly though the more violent moments later on in the film were left untouched, scenes that I felt were violent enough with the likes of a decapitation, and face/head stomp to warrant an axe under the NC16 rating. But I guess I'm not a censor.

Anyway, action fans may feel a little bit disappointed with this installment which ran just over 90 minutes. For the first hour we only have limited battle sequences involving our hero, so savour whatever you can in his fight for survival against hordes of weapon wielding enemies who have the unfair advantage of strength in numbers against a badly beaten (just came off those numerous fights from Ong Bak 2) Tien. Totally broken and just as he's about to be executed, Tien gets saved by the bell and brought back to the village of Kana Khone, where another fight ensues involving his new rescuers against Rajasena's assassins.

Then it's a good plod onto the hour mark, where Tien goes through a reincarnation of sorts, involving body wraps, mystical chants, Master Bua (Nirut Sirichanya) turning to monkhood and imparting pearls of wisdom, the rehabilitation of body, mind and soul, time for romance with Pim (Primorata Dejudom) his pillar of strength, discussions of karmic philosophy and the circle of life. Tien has to unlearn what he has learnt, and basically has to snap all the bones of his body back in place before he can practice martial arts again, which brings us a bearded Jaa and a training montage in a tree, under water, showing off a lean though scarred body, and is that a little paunch I see as well?

So while Tien takes a breather of sorts for his transformation, the duty of keeping the action junkies entertained fell on Dan Chupong's shoulders, as his very short supporting role as the Crow Ghost got expanded here, with his motivation fully revealed. His character soars to evil heights here, taking over the mantle as chief villain, and allowing Chupong to reintroduce himself as an action star to be reckoned with in his own right. Those who have seen Born to Fight and Dynamite Warrior will know what he is capable of, and I really salute him for daring to take on a negative role just to spar with Jaa on screen.

But what a letdown when they finally get together to do battle. Overall I found their sparring quite weak compared to what had been done earlier in the film involving other exponents, and the finishing blow was quite a letdown. Already the number of fights and spars here were limited to begin with, one even involving the architecture of the mind (sorry, Inception still fresh), and this one just didn't pack enough oomph. It's built up to be something like Tien being a Moses to lead his people, captive by the Crow to be slaves getting constantly whipped, back to their promised land, and hey, he even comes with a staff that got dropped off after a magical moment got executed, in time for fisticuffs.

The only positive coming out from this new Tien, is his new fighting ability. Tien is now more graceful, thanks to the fusion of dance to his moves, and the many moments when this parallel that dance brings to the table, got heavy emphasis, meshing what we usually think of as effeminate, to giving that suppleness to the more masculine moves involving elbows and knees to bone-crunching effect. This to-the-point moves were not forgotten of course, and come in the form of very economical, sometimes comical, but always simple, strikes involving forearms and a rigid body trained to be as hard as steel. I still miss those drunken fists moves from the earlier film, and the insanely choreographed finale battles then, which this one had tried to emulate, only to be a pale shadow of its former's glory.

Comedian Petchtai Wongkamiao provided some comic relief in a film that took itself quite seriously, and I think in light of some of the themes that were handled in quite a verbose manner, this was much appreciated. Ong Bak 3 straddles martial arts and philosophy very openly and tried to strike a fair balance between the two, but alas it came off as quite a schizophrenic film very much like True Legend in spirit. I hope the Ong Bak 2 and 3 episodes don't tank Tony Jaa's career, because I'm sure he has enough in reserve to wow audiences once again, should the right story come along that pushes his physical boundaries.

With this third installment in the "Ong Bak" franchise, Tony Jaa has finally given closure and clarity to "Ong Bak 2", an in-name only sequel to the original and much superior first chapter. That sequel, which was in fact a prequel set in 15th century Thailand compared to its contemporary predecessor, saw Tony Jaa as the orphaned son Tien of a noble family whose parents were killed by the power-hungry Lord Rajasena. Brought up by a group of warriors, Tien grows up to become a fearsome fighting machine himself- which is really an excuse for Tony Jaa to show off his bone-crunching moves.

"Ong Bak 2" ended on a cliffhanger, with Tien overwhelmed by the sheer number of Rajasena?s soldiers and taken away to be tortured to death. Then came the enigmatic voice-over suggesting that Tien may find a way to cheat death once again and the final shot of him standing in front of a scarred Golden Buddha statue. Picking right up after the events of "Ong Bak 2", this installment begins with an unpleasant sequence where Tien is beaten and brutalized in ways apparently too disconcerting even for an NC16 rating (yes, it's cut). His bones completely broken, Tien is saved from execution by a palace order- though it?s not explained why- and subsequently nursed to health by a group of villagers.

There he begins a journey of meditation- one of both physical and spiritual healing- that draws heavily on Buddhist teachings of forgiveness versus revenge, aided by his mentor Phra Bua (played by veteran Thai actor Nirut Sirijanya) and his childhood sweetheart Pim (played by Primrata Det-Udom). Meanwhile, Rajasena is haunted by a curse set upon him by the Crow Demon (Dan Chupong), the mysterious agile fighter whom Tien had fought with briefly in "Ong Bak 2", who wants the throne for himself. His body covered with tattoos, the Crow Demon soon uses his supernatural powers to enslave the villagers, setting the stage for an epic confrontation with Tien.

True enough, like "Ong Bak 2", audiences will be treated to a no-holds-barred vicious climax with plenty of jaw-breaking, head-cracking and knee-crunching action. Like its predecessor too, Tony Jaa will go up against dozens of enemy warriors in the midst of an elephant herd. And once again, like its predecessor, you can be sure that you'll be left in awe at Tony Jaa's physical agility and martial arts prowess- which was the very reason his name was mentioned among the greats Jet Li and Jackie Chan when "Ong Bak" was first released.

Here, Tony Jaa also showcases the 'nattayuth' fighting technique, a combination of traditional khon dancing with mixed martial arts, as his character Tien goes up against the Crow Demon. That showdown is simply poetry in motion- Jaa's 'nattayuth' moves equally graceful and brutal- made even more impressive when one starts to see the parallel between that and the dancing movements Tien had earlier learnt from Pim.

But credit must also go to his co-star Dan Chupong, who proves his mettle as Jaa?s equal in not just the climax but in almost every fight sequence that he appears in. In fact, while Tien is off meditating, Dan Chupong gets to steal the show in a thrilling fight against Rajasena's men as his Crow Demon character goes about smashing their skulls through thick brick walls. (There is certainly a real-life parallel to be drawn here, as Tony Jaa's decision to join the monkhood in May shortly after this film was released can only mean that Dan Chupong may steal his thunder as Thailand's most famous action star.) Of course, there is a good reason for Tien's (or Tony Jaa's) departure, for "Ong Bak 3" tries- though rather clumsily- to be a film about the redemptive potential of forgiveness. Whereas Jaa's Tien was driven by revenge in "Ong Bak 2", here he is driven by something different, something less destructive and ultimately liberating.

In the hands of more experienced directors, this noble ambition might have translated better to the big screen- but co-directors Tony Jaa and Jaa's mentor Panna Pittikrai (who are also action choreographers and action directors in the film) are unfortunately out of their league here. And that is where "Ong Bak 3" falters, not just for taking itself too seriously, but for doing so too maladroitly. Indeed, it's especially telling when one of the best things about the film is the levity that Phettai Wongkumlao's village idiot Mhen brings, especially during Tien's fight when he first emerges from his self-imposed solitude.

Much has been said about the production troubles surrounding "Ong Bak 2" and "Ong Bak 3"- Tony Jaa disappearing from the set for two whole months during filming for "Ong Bak 2"; subsequent studio pressure leading to the rushed production of "Ong Bak 2" and the decision to make this film "Ong Bak 3" partly to complete the story and partly to recoup costs. For all its travails, "Ong Bak 3" isn't the unnecessary three-quel it may seem, bringing a befitting conclusion to the story that Tony Jaa began in "Ong Bak 2" and left off so abruptly. At the very least, it's an excuse to watch Tony Jaa fight on screen again and probably for the last time in a long while. That alone is worth the price of admission.

It's a martial arts film. Nothing more. Jaa is one of the best movie fighters on the business and that is what you get after seeing this movie: a fun and amazing experience from one of the best martial artists of today. If you want "something more", go on and watch "The Notebook" or something like that.

For those who doesn't think that a movie should always try to be a "masterpiece", this is their kind of movie: pure fun, full of kicks, a history of vengeance, some love, and a lot of people getting kicked on the head.

Maybe is not at the height of Ong Bak 1, but it doesn't mean that it isn't a good film to watch if you like martial arts flicks.