Vengeance of an Assassin Blu-ray Review

     Actors: Dan Chupong, Nattawut Boonrabsap, Ping Lumprapleng

Director: Panna Rittikrai

Format: Blu-ray, Widescreen

Language: Thai

Subtitles: English

Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1

Number of discs: 1

Rated: Unrated

Studio: Well Go USA

Release Date: April 14, 2015

Run Time: 93 minutes

 

 

        Watching Vengeance of an Assassin is kind of like watching a live stunt show; you know that there is nothing real or even slightly believable, but it is more about the spectacle behind the execution of the stunts that is meant to impress. Much of the action in Vengeance of an Assassin goes far beyond believability, which makes even more obvious the trickery used to accomplish the stunts. In the film’s worst sequence, a frail and petite looking woman with arms the size of broomsticks throws our muscular male hero around as if he were a lightweight doll. As a film, Vengeance of an Assassin is ruined by the absurdity of sequences such as this; as a stunt show, it is almost improved.

 

        The film’s story follows the familiar narrative of the assassin with a conscience. Natee (Dan Chupong) only became a killer for hire as a way to find out who murdered his parents during his childhood. He is sent on a mission to kill a woman named Ploy (Nisachon Tuamsungnoen), the daughter of an influential politician, but instead decides to rescue her realizing the whole thing is a setup. The story is convoluted with too many characters, included an elder brother for our hero and endless nameless bad guys. The acting is as unbelievable as much of the fight choreographer, but not nearly as entertaining to endure.

 

        The story may be horrendous with acting to match it, all jumbled together with poor direction and sloppy editing, and somehow it doesn’t really matter. There is only one reason to see this film, and his name is Panna Rittikrai. Legendary for his fight choreography for Tony Jaa in the Ong Bak franchise, Vengeance of an Assassin was the final film made by the later director. It is clear by the complete emphasis on action and stunts that this was the filmmaker’s strong suit, whereas other aspects of filmmaking are still something of a mystery to most in the Thailand film industry.

 

        Though this film is truly only worth watching for a handful of action sequences and a few impressively choreographed tracking shots, the high definition of the Blu-ray enhances these brief moments of pleasurable spectacle. It also goes a long way to exposing the weakness in other aspects of filmmaking, including shots that are out of focus, inconsistent, and simply poorly lit. The disc provides no extras to make the purchase of Rittikrai’s final film any more desirable, not even a retrospective featurette for the filmmaker.

 

Entertainment Value: 5.5/10

Quality of Filmmaking: 3.5/10

Historical Significance:  4/10

Special Features: 0/10