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 Chocolate
(2008)
R3 / NTSC DVD
Happy Home Entertainment / 2008
Directed by: Prachya Pinkaew
Written by: Chukiat Sakveerakul & Nepalee Sakveerakul
Cast: Jeeja Yanin, Ammara Siripong & Hiroshi Abe
Review by Phillip Escott
From the director of Ong Bak comes Chocolate, the story of
an autistic girl whose mother is terminally ill and requires
hospital treatment. Thanks to a little black book of names
and details the daughter, Zen (the awesome Jeeja Yanin) is
able to locate the people who owe her mother money. Too bad
then, that her mother was once involved in the criminal
underground and the characters who owe her money are
anything buy savory! Luckily for Zen, Thai TV only seem to
show Tony Jaa movies and the girl has a phenomenal ability
to mimic what she sees!
Fighting her way through an array of crime bosses, she
finally confronts the biggest boss in the underground; the
man who is also responsible for her mothers disability, who
also happens to have a gang of transsexuals to carry out his
dirty work! The stage is set for some serious chop-sokey
mayhem and some serious physical damage!
Jeeja Yanin was never going to top her predecessor Tony Jaa
in the action stakes (some wire work is used in the finale)
but she does beat the shit out of his acting abilities! She
proves very sympathetic and her portrayal of autism is
genuinely impressive. Her martial arts skills are also
dazzling, she reminds me of those old school action
heroines, like Michele Yeoh, from 80's Hong Kong cinema:
She's a tough girl who can take a high fall and a kick to
the head!
The action may not live up to Prachya Pinkaew's previous
directorial efforts, but this is more polished than his Jaa
movies. Tighter editing and some pretty impressive visuals
flair, which he showed a hint of in Warrior King (The
Protector, Tom Yom Goong) which elevates the movie above his
other efforts. The action will not disappoint fans, the
finale is very impressive and shows just how dedicated the
Thai stunt community is to remaining the best /idiotic in
the world. Sure, fans will be let down by the minimal
wire-work that does pop up at the end, but it's forgivable –
as not even Tony Jaa would be able to achieve what is being
asked of the performers!! |
