My fellow martial arts movie fans, prepare to die and go to heaven. Twitch has scored a jaw-dropping, kick ass action promo for ONG BAK 2, Tony Jaa’s sequel (in name only) to ONG BAK. Let me just say the obvious now, Tony Jaa, as action director and star, has officially ascended to his rightful place as reigning king of martial arts filmdom and nobody can touch him, nobody. This movie has epic martial madness written all over it and I cannot wait to see it. Really, I can’t. Somebody send me a screener, now!
[Edit: The promo reel is no longer available.]
What viewers may find interesting is Jaa’s use of Chinese kung fu, in addition to his signature Muay Thai screen fighting. Featured in the promo is the rope dart, three-section staff and southern fist forms common in Chinese kung fu and kung fu movies. These are apparently techniques that are not new to Jaa who began his training by imitating the moves of his screen heroes Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan. Only years later, at the age of 15 did Jaa first meet action director Panna Rittikrai who introduced him to Muay Thai and screen fighting after being impressed by the young man’s acrobatic abilities.
Tony Jaa previously wowed audiences with ONG BAK in 2003 and made a modest follow-up with THE PROTECTOR (aka TOM YUM GOONG), both under the direction of Prachya Pinkaew. Jaa has since parted ways with Pinkaew to let the director focus on another new protégé of Rittrikrai, Jeeja Yanin, who recently had her debut in CHOCOLATE.
Meanwhile, ONG BAK 2 will mark Jaa’s directing debut and a test of his ability to handle his own action movie. If this promo reel is any indication, Tony Jaa is not only here to stay, he’s here to set the new standard for serious martial arts screen action.
The Weinstein Company already owns North American rights to ONG BAK 2 and will hopefully not wait long to get it released either in theaters or on DVD. They previously released THE PROTECTOR to theaters in 2006 but it was shortened and presented with English dubbing. Let’s also hope they follow the ways of their Dragon Dynasty home video label and keep this one intact.
Tags: Ong Bak 2 (2008), The Weinstein Company, Tony Jaa, upcoming, Videos










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