B.K.O BANGKOK KNOCKOUT DVD (2010)

SYNOPSIS: Rittkrai is a legend in Thai action cinema. The director of Born to Fight and fight coordinator for such classics as Ong Bak and Chocolate, he was the star of many action films in the 70s and 80s, and is famously a mentor to some of the top action superstars working today, including Tony Jaa (Ong Bak), Dan Chupong (Dynamite Warrior) and Jija Yanin (Chocolate). BKO features a range of martial art disciplines. A group of 'fight club' pals whose styles vary from Muay Thai and Capoeira to Kung Fu and Tai Chi must fight for their lives when one of their friends is kidnapped.

MOVIE REVIEW:

We have great empathy for stunt people. These are the ones responsible for some of the awesome, death-defying action that we get to see on screen, the ones who make the lead actor we adore look good in the action movies we love, and the ones we probably don’t even know by name or face because we have stepped out of the cinema by the time their names appear on the credits. Yes, we have great empathy for them, which is why despite the glaring flaws in a movie like “Bangkok Knockout”, we’re going to say that we love it.

Legendary action movie guru Panna Rittikrai’s “Bangkok Knockout” is ultimately a celebration of these stunt people, many of whose faces we get to see for the first time on the big screen. Panna is the director of the fight-fest “Born to Fight”, the stunt director of the Tom Yum Goong film series, the co-director with Tony Jaa on the second and third Ong Bak movies, as well as Tony’s personal mentor. If there’s anything you should get from his experience, it’s that you can expect nothing less than the most hard-hitting action in this latest.

And boy, oh boy, this is hands down the best straightforward action movie you’ll see all year, or quite possibly for some time. An impressive array of martial arts is on display- Muay Thai, taekwondo, kung fu, parkour and capeoira- each performed by no less than professionals, and do they take their work seriously. Every fight is brutal to say the least, the fighters going at each other in the most realistic way possible- punching, kicking, and leaping their way into the air- and you’ll wince at every crunching bone you hear, for you can almost feel how real it gets.

The best part about it? It doesn’t seem as if they had taken any safety measures on set, none of that wirework that is now so apparent even in Hong Kong’s martial arts flicks. This is quite simply unadulterated stuff that is pure adrenaline-pumping orgasmic pleasure for every action fanatic out there- and we’re not even talking about the death match featuring a hulking guy behind a metallic mask wielding a giant axe going up against one Thai-Chinese kungfu dude and another two Muay Thai exponents.

There’s also the much-talked about climax along a moving container truck, where two of our heroes face off underneath while trying to avoid getting crushed under its wheels. It’s a pumped up version of a similar scene some may recognise from Panna’s earlier “Born to Fight” but twice as dangerous and many times more exciting. In fact, that’s also only the tail-end of an extended half-hour climactic fight sequence that you’ll have to see to believe.

But if “Bangkok Knockout” has all the advantages of having real stunt people act in front of the camera, it also inherits all its consequent disadvantages. The acting is nonexistent to say the least, especially when the script requires for them to emote. Thankfully, there are few of these moments, and Panna, who co-wrote the screenplay with Doojit Hongthong and Jonathan Siminoe, keeps the plot as simple as it could be. The excuse for all these fighters to go up against each other? A reality-style TV show for high-rollers to gamble their fortunes away.

Of course, you should throw any concern relating to anything else but the action out of the window, for that is ultimately the aim of a movie like this. So despite all its flaws, we’re going to say that this is a must-watch action movie for anyone who loves a pure adrenaline rush. There is stuff you see here that you’ll probably never get to see in another action movie, and this no-frills hard-hitting action showcase is indeed a knockout by any standard

SPECIAL FEATURES:

NIL

AUDIO/VISUAL:

The Dolby Digital sound is good enough for hearing the punches, kicks and other bone-crunching mayhem- don’t expect any quality surround sound though. Visuals are clear, but the picture is presented in a 4:3 standard TV format.

MOVIE RATING:

DVD RATING :

Review by Gabriel Chong

Posted on 17 June 2011