Runtime: 96 minutes
Directed by: Jesse V.
Johnson
Starring: Tony Jaa, Tiger
Chen, Iko Uwais, Celina Jade, Scott Adkins, Michael Jai White
From: Several companies
What a Thai/Chinese movie this was:
On various sites and messageboards, there's been plenty of hype for this motion picture, as it features several martial artist stars from Far East Asia along with two martial artist actors who should be FAR bigger stars than they are currently in Scott Adkins and Michael Jai White. Director Jesse V. Johnson has been in the stunt field for a few decades now and has directed various pictures, but this is his highest profile gig. While this is not gore-soaked like The Night Comes for Us or transcendent like the first Raid, I thought this was a great time and if you're a genre fan...
The story is not Dostoevsky, but I never expected it to be. The young daughter of a billionaire promises to put a stop to organized crime in that part of the world-while not specifically mentioned, this film was made in Thailand-and this gets the expected reaction. A terrorist is broken out of a jungle camp in order to put a hit on this young lady, and for different reasons, this causes Tony Jaa, Tiger Chen, & Iko Uwais to seek revenge against said terrorist (Adkins) and the people who broke him out, including White and former MMA fighter Michael Bisping. In a supporting role is JeeJa Yanin and it reminds me that I need to finally check out her starring roles in such films as Chocolate and Raging Phoenix.
For low budget action fans, you likely will find this to be a blast. The action is plentiful and it's not just hand to hand combat; there is plenty of gunfire and many people are mowed down. But it's the martial arts battles that are the most memorable, and all are thrilling to watch as all those different styles are shown, and thankfully everything is shot clearly so you aren't bumfuzzled as to what's going on. There are also amusing bits, such as Tony Jaa: Chef. Triple Threat is an example of how lower budget action usually kicks the ass of bigger budget counterparts that Hollywood has put out in recent years.
I saw this movie theatrically last night when Well Go USA had screenings of it for one night only across the country. Those that missed out, don't worry: it will be released on VOD this upcoming Friday (March 22).
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