Ong-bak (2003)

When the head of a statue sacred to a village is stolen, a young martial artist goes to the big city and finds himself taking on the underworld to retrieve it.

Director:

Prachya Pinkaew

Writers:

Prachya Pinkaew (story), Panna Rittikrai (story),

Stars:

Petchtai Wongkamlao, Tony Jaa, Pumwaree Yodkamol

2 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Petchtai Wongkamlao	...	Humlae / Dirty Balls / George (as Petchtai Wongkamlao)
Tony Jaa	...	Ting (as Panom Yeerum)
Pumwaree Yodkamol	...	Muay Lek
Suchao Pongwilai	...	Komtuan
Chumphorn Thepphithak	...	Uncle Mao
Cheathavuth Watcharakhun	...	Peng
Wannakit Sirioput	...	Don
Rungrawee Barijindakul	...	Ngek
Chatthapong Pantanaunkul	...	Saming
Nudhapol Asavabhakhin	...	Toshiro
Pornpimol Chookanthong	...	Mae Waan
Udom Chouncheun	...	Ta Meun
Boonsri Yindee	...	Yai Hom
Arirat Ratanakaitkosol	...	Tang On
Woravit Tanochitsirikul	...	Sia Pao

Storyline

Booting lives in a small and peaceful village. One day a sacred Buddha statuette called Ong Bak is stolen from the village by a immoral businessman who sells it for exorbitant profits. It soon becomes the task of a young man, Boonting (Phanom Yeeram), to track the thief down to Bangkok voluntarily and reclaim the religious treasure. Along the way, Boonting uses his astonishing athleticism and traditional Muay Thai skills to combat his adversaries.

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Plot Keywords:

buddha | statue | combat | head | muay thai | 

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Taglines:

To fight for the honor of his village, he must unleash the ancient art of Muay Thai: 9 Body Weapons

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Genres:

Action | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for sequences of strong violence, language, some drug use and sexuality

Details

Official Sites:

Europa Corp. [fr] Official site [au]

Country:

Thailand

Language:

Thai English

Release Date:

23 October 2003 (Singapore)

Also Known As:

Daredevil

Filming Locations:

Bangkok, Thailand

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

£101,634 (UK) (13 May 2005)

Gross:

£214,580 (UK) (20 May 2005)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Baa-Ram-Ewe, Sahamongkolfilm Co.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min 105 min 104 min (director's cut) 100 min (DVD edition)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital EX

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

More than Luc Besson, the crew also seems to like Steven Spielberg. During the alley chase, right after Tony Jaa has performed some break-dance-looking moves on a table, he jumps off and runs away, while the text "Hi Speilberg let do it together" can be read on the wall in the background.

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Goofs

During the tuk-tuk chase scene, Humlae's tuk-tuk reaches the end of the incomplete highway and the chasing vehicles fall over the edge. There are several shots as they fall and Humlae's tuk-tuk alternates between having one wheel off (low shot) and being fully on the highway (high shot). It is only after the initial chasing tuk-tuks have fallen off that his vehicle actually gets pushed halfway off.

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Quotes

Big Bear, a Fighter: Come on! Fuck Muay Thai!

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Connections

Featured in My Name Is Juani (2006)

User Reviews

...What can I say?!!?!?

Firstly, Please, please ignore any negative comments about this film.... I watched this film on it's release in Thailand a couple of years ago and I have a subtitled copy.

If you are of sound mind, this film will leave you gob-smacked at the way that Muay Thai has been portrayed on film -promoting its effectiveness in streetfighting situations and the acrobatics performed by this guy are just incredible.

Secondly... the person who wrote that the 18 year old white dudes were out of place ...do you know anything about Thailand and bars on Khaosan Road?????? the place is full of them.

If you want to see something more incredible watch the 'making of Ong Bak'