IMDB Links:    Bodyguard        Bodyguard 2

One perennial favorite for film goes over the last century or so has been the action flick. It has always amazed audiences to watch feats of exceptional agility and strength played out before them. These movies allow the viewers to vicariously live through unimaginable dangers and excitement. There is a close relative to the action film that may not seem apparent at first glance, comedy. Many of the great comedians have been physical comics. Men like Harold Lloyd (ask your grandparents if necessary), Dick Van Dyke and Jim Carrey use their bodies as a means to make the audience laugh. Just look at the presentation of martial arts and a good physical comic and you will see the similarities. Both are amazingly nimble throwing their limbs around in what would seem impossible ways. It was only natural for the two forms of entertainment to combine giving rise to the action comedy. The master of this genre is Jackie Chan but he only opened the way for many other talented performers. Asia has adopted the marital arts flick and made it a specific type of film they can call their own. They have also done the same with the action comedy. There are certain nuances to these films that make them different from the ones we have over here in the States. For one thing their movies are less slapstick than ours. They tend to have a type of elegance to their performances that is more like a highly choreographed dance than a fight. Jackie Chan made action comedy famous for Hong King but Petchtai Wongkamlao has done the same for Thailand. Two of his most globally famous films, ‘The Bodyguard’ and its follow-up prequel ‘Bodyguard 2’ are available together in a DVD set. In some ways the Thailand variant of this genre is an acquired taste. Fans will love this set right off the bat but those out there who have only been exposed to American and Hong Kong flicks of this type may have to warm up to it. Now with the two movies packaged together it is easy and affordable to find out for yourself.

Wongkamlao who wrote and directed both of these flicks has made a career for himself as the Thai equivalent of Hong Kong’s Jackie Chan. While he comes short of Chan’s style and grace Wongkamlao is certainly up there. He began his career as a Thai comedian and personality working in the local Bangkok café circuit. From there he went on to several comic television variety and game shows. While none of this would seem to in indicate a success in films this comedy background went a long way to making his movies enjoyable. Instead of having a martial arts expect move over to action comedy here was a comedian who was able to leverage his talents in physical comedy and martial arts into a whole new aspect of his career. It is admirable how he built up his film career slowly. Instead of going directing to leading roles Wongkamlao took on smaller role, usually as the comic relief in an action flick. From there he moved up to staring in films as well as writing the screen plays, directing and finally producing. Most of his stories, including the two here, are pretty standard for the genre. There is betrayal, tragedy , revenge and a little bit of romance thrown in for good measure. The two films here are connected through the character Wongkamlao created, Wong Kom in the first and Khamlao in the second, otherwise known as the bodyguard. He is a stumbling man who tries his best and has a degree of martial arts talents but ultimately he is a failure at his profession. With so many genres to juggle Wongkamlao bit off more than he could handle in both of these movies. The stories are predictable with nothing to surprise the viewers. The fun is in the infusion of comedy especially during the action sequences. Wongkamlao has a strange style of fighting that simultaneously makes you laugh and wonder how he managed to pull off the stunts. He also includes some inside jokes in his screen plays target towards his fans. One of the most notable is a reference to his character’s name in a previous flick, Ong-bak, a case of the actors breaking the forth wall to complain to the director about the size of their parts.

Wongkamlao does a little better as the director in these movies. He does keep the pace moving along at a good clip. One difficulty he has is transitioning between the various genres that are represented. At times it seems forced and artificial as Wongkamlao moves between themes such as betrayal and romance. It is difficult to pin down and perhaps it is due to the translation of the language or differences in the culture. Overall he provides a pair of entertaining flicks that may not be as good as their Hong Kong equivalent but they do work.

In the first film, Bodyguard, Wongkamlao is very busy trying to protect his boss from a group of gunmen. The boss, Chot Petchpantakarn (Piphat Apiraktanakorn) is the riches man in Asia and has made many enemies along the way. The fight spills out to the street in order to accommodate a really well done four way car crash. The stunt is a bit over the top nut fun to watch anyway. The bodyguard is unable the bad guys from getting a few shots that find their way to the boss. He goes down but manages to hold on and is taken to the hospital where he ultimately dies. The bodyguard is full of remorse and shame at not doing his job of keeping the man alive. He sets out to find the killers and seek revenge. The boss as left his empire to his son, Chaichol (Piphat Apiraktanakorn). In short order the son becomes the target of another assassination attempt which thankfully fails. The bodyguard goes to a mental hospital to avoid being killed and Chaichol takes up with a in a nearby slum where he is taken in by a strange family which includes a woman (Pumwaree Yodkamol). He falls for her, the bodyguard has to come out of hiding and the whole thing becomes a slapstick chase.

The Bodyguard 2 takes place just before the events in the first film. Khamlao is working as a secret agent of some sort for a country called Wongnaileum. As the film opens he is sent to Bangkok to locate a group of terrorists. To this end he goes undercover in a gay bar dressed in a sort of cowboy outfit. The bar is a front for an arms dealer that he hopes will lead him to the terrorists. He is pulled from that and told to go undercover as a singer to infiltrate a record company that is under suspicion. He winds up becoming a national pop idol which serves to hinder his investigation.

The films are available as a double feature DVD released by Magnolia Home Entertainment. They have made a name for themselves with little Indy flicks and some of the more interesting Asian movies like this. It is not a good as some of the same genre in Hong Kong but it is good old fashion slapstick fun.