Epic fights can't 'protect' butchered plot

When "Ong-Bak" was released last year, it signaled a new era of martial arts by introducing Muay Thai force of nature Tony Jaa. With Jackie Chan now in his 50s and Jet Li done with kung-fu epics, Jaa has taken up the torch -- but with a mess like "The Protector," he may very well fall flat on his face. \nWhere "Ong-Bak" was about one man's quest to recover a stolen Buddha head, "Protector" is the same quest but for an elephant. Jaa plays Kham, the son of a village elder, raised to cherish the precious pachyderms as a symbol of ancient Thai culture. When two elephants are stolen by thugs from Australia, Kham journeys to the land down under to save the noble beasts while demolishing the crime syndicate responsible for his troubles. \nThanks to the reliable Weinstein Bros, not only did "The Protector" get a U.S. release, it also had nearly 40 minutes chopped out of it, making the plot seem nearly incomprehensible. Of course Quentin Tarantino also slaps his name on it to guarantee geeks will come out of the woodwork to see the flick -- except when QT fought for "Hero" to remain uncut, clearly this time he could care less what the studio scissors chop apart. The film also features terrible English dubbing and a new soundtrack by a seemingly unrecognizable RZA (of Wu-Tang fame). \nThe fight sequences, much like "Ong-Bak," are over-the-top and brutal. Jaa squares off against a gang of thugs who belong at the X-Games, breaks the arms/shoulders of some 30 guys in one fight, takes on a Capoeira expert and gets pummeled by behemoth Nathan Jones who'll soon be seen in Jet Li's final fighting epic, "Fearless." \nFor director Prachya Pinkaew, who also helmed "Ong-Bak," this time around his style is both impressive and disappointing. There is an incredible fight sequence that follows Jaa up a spiraling staircase which is done in a single take -- a clear sign of heavy planning and execution. Then you get scenes completely muddied by Vaseline on the camera lens and quite possibly the worst CG-created sequence I've ever seen in a film involving ancient elephant battles in Thailand; its god awful, no other way to put it. \nAfter being disappointed, a friend told me he'd be sending me the Thai version of "Protector" (known as "Tom Yum Goong") so I could see the real deal. 40 minutes missing is unforgivable and only makes "The Protector" suffer; I'm quite positive a U.S. DVD release won't even contain the Thai cut. My advice to those seeking to satisfy their martial arts fix is to do the following: see "Ong-Bak" if you haven't, rent the amazing "District B13" and in a few weeks go see "Fearless"