Ong Bak 2 is the prequel to the original action-packed Muay Thai flick that launched Tony Jaa into stardom. It was very exciting being there in the world premier gala over a year ago outside Siam Paragon in Bangkok, where Tony himself gave candid interviews about his film. Tony seemed to be in good spirits that day. After talking to an insider who told me that the movie was actually cut in half, making way for an Ong Bak 3, I realized, the whole Ong Bak phenomenon has become a franchise. Actually, Ong Bak 3 was just released in Thailand theaters a few months ago. So back to this movie. There’s really no need for me to talk about the story in detail. You just have to rent it if you’re a Tony Jaa fan. All I can say is that, he decided to showcase more of his other skills aside from ancient Muay Thai on this prequel. Perhaps Jaa wanted the world to know how knowledgeable he was about other Martial Arts. In either case, his stunts did not disappoint. But many purists may not be as enthusiastic with his new approach. Set with a much higher film budget, he was able to build a whole city for his film as well as feature some well known Thai actors and actresses to complement his heavily choreographed scenes. Looking at Jaa move, its obvious as to why nobody can top him in today’s Martial Arts film genre. Yet the question remains, did the action provide enough bang to make up for the story itself? During that time, there was news that Jaa secluded himself in the forests to meditate and prepare for production. His associates stated that he was difficult to work with. I would say that, overall, the film had its moments. Even Tony Jaa must have taken some acting lessons to deliver his dramatic ending scene when he learned that his new found father, who took him in and taught him all he knew about fighting, was responsible for killing his real father, soon after apologizing to him, dies in his arms. That was intense. As a Martial Artist, I’d still watch this flick simply for its sophisticated choreography that only Jaa and his fellow stuntmen could deliver.