Credited cast: | |||
Tony Jaa | ... | Chatchai | |
Jing Wu | ... | Chan Chi-Kit | |
Simon Yam | ... | Chan Kwok-Wah | |
Jin Zhang | ... | Ko Hung (as Zhang Jin) | |
Louis Koo | ... | Hung Mun-Gong | |
Ken Lo | ... | Wong Kwong | |
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Jun Kung | ... | Hung Mun-Biu |
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Dominic Lam | ... | Cheung Chun-Tung |
Babyjohn Choi | ... | Kwok Chun-Yat | |
Philip Keung | ... | Fan Ging-Hung | |
Andrew Ng | ... | Uncle On | |
Rest of cast listed alphabetically: | |||
Wai Ai | |||
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Aaron Chow | ||
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Alex Mai | ... | Boatman |
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Chik-Chi Tsim |
Hong Kong police officer Kit (Wu Jing) goes undercover in order to catch Mr. Hung (Louis Koo), the mastermind behind a crime syndicate. When the operation goes sour, and the undercover cops are betrayed, Kit disappears without a trace. Uncle Wah (Simon Yam) defies the order from his commanding officer and tracks Kit to a prison in Thailand. Thai Police officer Chai (Tony Jaa) becomes a prison guard in order to raise money for his daughter who has leukemia. He's assigned to keep an eye on Kit. Even though Chai and Kit are in opposing positions and they don't speak a common language, Kit turns out to be a suitable bone marrow donor who can save Chai's daughter. While Chai is determined to keep Kit alive, the warden Ko (Zhang Jin) wants him dead to ensure the smooth operation of the prison, which is the front for Mr Hung's organ trafficking business. Mr Hung shows up in Thailand so he can use his younger brother's (Jun Kung) heart in a heart transplant to save his own life. The stage is ... Written by Jalan Harris
A little misleading with Tony Jaa on the poster. He plays a prison guard whose trying to get help for his sick child, but his character is not as forefront as you'd expect, but it's all good cause Jaa brings the heat.
Most of Jaa's movies are designed like video games, with Jaa fighting a few random henchmen and then fighting the master of the level (sometimes more like a fighting game where Jaa fights one kung fu master, after the other). In this movie he's more dramatic than action oriented, which is why he keeps the marshal arts real basic.
But basic turns out to be good. Not brushing off what a huge fan I am of Jaa, but there is a certain gimmick he's going for in films like Ong bak as he showcases all he's capable of, but there was something about Jaa just doing the basic kicks and punches that felt more electrifying.
Plus he got to show that he has slightly a little more acting skill than we think (although the love he shows for his daughter is no different than the love he showed for the elephants in the Protector)
As for the rest of the film, it was certainly a well done crime drama. It's a very complex story filmed well and with great action sequences that keep you interested. Good watch.