Category: Movies → Raging Phoenix (2009),dvd rip (hot)

You can’t blame the Thais for continuing to produce action movies like “Raging Phoenix”. There are basically only two genres coming out of Thailand that sells nowadays – martial arts movies and horror films. Everything else just doesn’t translate very well. One of the industry’s newest import is female ass kicking wonder Jeeja Yanin, who burst onto the scene last year with “Chocolate”, directed by “Ong Bak” head honcho Prachya Pinkaew. The film benefited greatly from Yanin’s unassuming features. For “Raging Phoenix”, we already know the deal, so director Rashane Limtrakul and action choreographer Panna Rittikrai (another “Ong Bak” vet) had to throw us a twist – a new form of martial arts that combines Muay Thai with breakdancing. Or at least, that’s the idea.

The plot for “Raging Phoenix” is as superfluous as they come – neglected rich girl Deu (Yanin) spends her time playing (badly, I might add) drums for a pop band, when she’s nearly abducted one day while trying to drink herself to death thanks to an ex-boyfriend. As luck would have it, Deu is saved by Sanim (Kazu Patrick Tang), who happens to be hanging around when the bad guys come for our heroine. Sanim whisks her off, battling guys in pogo shoes outfitted with blades along the way. He takes her back home, or what passes for home, where Deu meets his two inebriated comrades. Sanim, you see, didn’t stumble across Deu by accident; he, along with his buds, have been tracking a kidnapping ring snatching up Thai girls for nefarious purposes for some time, and was on a stake-out when Deu stumbled into their business.
We eventually come to learn that Sanim and his pals are more than just crusaders; they are themselves victims of the kidnapping ring – men whose women were taken by the scoundrels. When it becomes obvious that Deu is the perfect bait to lure out the bad guys, she must be taught the ways of the b-boy combat arts. Which, um, happens in a couple of days. Or however long the film’s training montage lasts. To be honest with you, it’s all a little silly how easily and quickly Deu goes from bad drummer in a pop band to super ass kicking heroine. Not only does she suddenly develop amazing b-boying skills, our girl mixes them up with some primo Muay Thai striking abilities as well. Yes, this is definitely one of those, “Just go along with it” moments.
The hook for “Raging Phoenix” is that director Limtrakul and action choreographer Rittikrai have come up with an original form of combat by combining the free-flowing rhythms of breakdancing with Muay Thai. And lots of drinking. It works, to an extent, but more often than not the whole thing looks and feels clumsy, not helped by the fact that the breakdancers are probably not real martial artists, and as a result their kicks and punches don’t look quite as convincing. It’s saying something when the tiny girl actually looks like she can kick ass even before she is supposed to have been privy to the (in this case, literally) secret “sauce” of the Muay Thai fighting breakdancers.